WEAP
Freemium
Integrated water resources planning and policy analysis framework for basin-scale supply and demand modeling.
BASINS
DormantEPA's watershed assessment suite — HSPF continuous watershed-quality modelling with GIS and data access built in.
by US EPA
- Pricing
- Gov-Public
- License
- US Government (public domain)
- Commercial use
- Permitted
- Ecosystem
- MapWindow GIS, HSPF
- Platform
- Windows
About BASINS
BASINS (Better Assessment Science Integrating point & Non-point Sources) bundles the EPA's watershed analysis chain into one system: an open GIS (MapWindow), automatic download of US environmental datasets, watershed delineation, and the venerable HSPF model for continuous simulation of watershed hydrology and pollutant loading, plus links to SWAT and other tools.
HSPF remains one of the most capable continuous watershed water-quality models ever built, and BASINS is its practical delivery vehicle for TMDL and source-assessment work. Development has slowed markedly; it earns its listing for the installed base and the lack of a true replacement.
Where it fits in the workflow
TerrainCatchmentRainfallRunoffRoutingHydraulicsMappingReporting
Alternatives to BASINS
Ranked by the topics, categories and workflow stages they share with BASINS.
SWAT+
Open Source
The USDA watershed model for land use, sediment and nutrients — continuous simulation at catchment scale.
USGS StreamStats
Gov-Public
USGS web tool for basin delineation and regression-based flow statistics at any US stream point.
CE-QUAL-W2
Free
The standard 2D reservoir and stratified-river water-quality model — temperature, DO and eutrophication.
Delta Hydro Studio
FreemiumVerified
Browser-based hydrology and hydraulics calculators for practising engineers — no install, report-ready output.
EFDC+
Freemium
Open-source 3D hydrodynamics and water quality — the EFDC lineage modernised, with a commercial GUI option.