IWI Map Portal

By: Austin Braget

Hello everyone and welcome to our first blog posting of 2019!  This entry focuses on the IWI map portal, where you can find it, and what you can do with it.

On the IWI website, https://iwinst.org/, scroll down on the main page until you see the IWI Map Portal image and click the text, or you can get there by clicking the following link, map portal.

The first thing you will see is satellite imagery of the Red River Basin with outlines for the entire basin as well as boundaries for each HUC 8 watershed.  There are also layers that can be selected on the right-hand side of the screen that can be turned on and off at will.  For example, you can see the flood extents for the 1997 or 2009 floods, although you will have to zoom in on an area of interest to see them.

In addition to the layers, there are other tabs along the top right that show other types of geospatial information, as shown below.

The “Basemap Gallery” allows you to change the basemap from satellite with labels to streets or topographic.  There is also an option to display historical aerial imagery for Minnesota and North Dakota.

Next to the Basemap Gallery is the “Watershed Delineation” tool as denoted by an icon resembling a leaf.  Currently the only watershed that can be viewed is the James River, but more will be added as projects are completed.

The “Flood Inundation” tab allows you to select an area of interest and see the amount of area that would be impacted by a flood event at different stages.

Other functions of the IWI Map Portal include an elevation labeler, measurement feature, and the ability to draw on the map.  You may also find your township and range under the “PLSS Find” tab.

On the far right of the tabs is an “About” section that gives more information about why the portal was made as well as providing some helpful links to the operators of the site. Put the IWI Map Portal to work for you today!