A tool for risk-based management of surface water quality

Abstract Water quality Risk Analysis Tool (WaterRAT) is software for supporting decision-making in surface water quality management. The philosophy behind the software is that uncertainty in water quality model predictions is inevitably high due to model equation error, parameter error, and limited definition of boundary conditions and management objectives. Using sensitivity and uncertainty analyses based on Monte Carlo simulation and first order methods, WaterRAT allows the modeller to identify the significant uncertainties, and evaluate the degree to which they control decision-making risk. WaterRAT has a library of river and lake water quality models of varying complexity, and these can be applied at a wide range of temporal and spatial scales, allowing the model design to be responsive to both the modelling task and the data constraints.

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