Integrated Social, Economic and Environmental System (ISEE) - A Report to the International Joint Commission

Sep 15, 2026

Uploaded by Graffin

Integrated Social, Economic and Environmental (ISEE) system technical report prepared for the International Joint Commission in support of the International Lake Champlain-Richelieu River Study. After the 2011 flood, Canada and the United States asked the IJC to identify causes and propose solutions; the ISEE system was developed to quantify benefits and drawbacks of flood mitigation alternatives using performance indicators over time. The document details the geo-referenced database, open-source Python workflow, hydraulic mapping and the cross-referencing of geospatial datasets to evaluate diverse social, economic, and environmental impacts.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages71

Reading Time2 h 59 min

AccessFree to download

Integrated Social, Economic and Environmental System (ISEE)

Purpose and origin in IJC studies

Flood mitigation alternatives evaluated

Modelling approach and inputs

Hydraulic mapping and scenario interpolation

Performance indicators and outcomes

Integrated Social, Economic and Environmental System (ISEE) International Lake Champlain-Richelieu River Study A REPORT TO THE INTERNATIONAL JOINT COMMISSION Submitted by Mathieu Roy, Nicolas Fortin, Gabriel Poirier, Rémi Gosselin, Dominic Thériault, Antoine Maranda, Olivier Champoux, Marianne Bachand, and Jean Morin Environment Canada – Meteorological Service of Canada – Hydrodynamics and Ecohydraulics Section December 2022 This report received valuable review and comments from the Study Board members and study managers. INTERNATIONAL LAKE CHAMPLAIN-RICHELIEU RIVER STUDY BOARD Co-chair, Canada Jean-François Cantin Co-chair, United States Deborah H. Lee Members, Canada Michel Jean Daniel Leblanc Madeleine Papineau Richard Turcotte Members, United States Eric Day Ann Ruzow Holland Pete LaFlamme Kristine Stepenuck Study co-manager, Canada Serge Lepage Study co-manager, United States Mae Kate Campbell A REPORT TO THE INTERNATIONAL JOINT COMMISSION 2022 We would like to acknowledge the support from Lake Champlain Richelieu River Study members through the course of this ambitious project. We especially want to thank Bill Werick, Syed Moin and Ted Yuzyk of the Flood Management and Mitigation Measures Technical Work Group for their insights. We also want to thank Perry Thomas and Rose Paul, who successively assumed the role of United States Resource Response Co-lead, and Matthew Kraft for their participation to the selection of performance indicators in the early stage of the Study. We are also grateful to Study managers Serge Villeneuve, Serge Lepage, Maryse Sohier, Robert Flynn and Mae Kate Campbell for their administrative and coordination efforts. Also, we want to thank Study Co-Chairs Deborah Lee and Jean-François Cantin and the LCRR Study Board for their support. A REPORT TO THE INTERNATIONAL JOINT COMMISSION 2022 Following the spring 2011 flood in the Lake Champlain Richelieu River (LCRR) basin, the governments of Canada and United States mandated the International Joint Commission (IJC) to examine the causes of flooding and to recommend solutions to attenuate the impacts of future floods. The IJC established the International LCRR Study Board to identify and evaluate solutions to mitigate flooding in the basin. To evaluate flood mitigation alternatives, the LCRR Study developed the Integrated Social Economic Environmental (ISEE) system, an integrated modelling platform designed to quantify the benefits and drawbacks of alternatives using Performance Indicators (PIs) . This report describes the technical features of the ISEE system, with a particular focus on its components and functioning. An integrated modelling framework allows coupling of models from different disciplines to support a comprehensive assessment of complex natural resource management aspects using a consistent methodology across the social, economic and environmental components. The LCRR ISEE system has its origins in the 2D Integrated Ecosystem Response Model (IERM2D), which has shown its usefulness in evaluating the environmental impacts of water regulation plans in previous IJC studies. In the LCRR study, the ISEE system was used to evaluate the potential impacts of three structural flood mitigation alternatives: a flow diversion through the Chambly Canal, a selective excavation with a submerged weir, and the latter combined with an additional minor diversion through the canal. The ISEE system uses a geo-referenced database and a collection of open-source Python scripts to model PIs in aquatic andriparian areas to evaluate scenarios over time to account for the long term hydrological variability. ISEE relies solely on free open-source Python libraries facilitating migrations, updates, sharing and collaboration with partners and organizations. The ISEE system simulates hydraulics and estimates the impacts of water level variations using various PIs developed through a collaboration with

FAQs

What is the ISEE system used for in the LCRR study?

It quantifies the benefits and drawbacks of flood mitigation alternatives by applying performance indicators to social, economic, and environmental components over time.

Which flood mitigation alternatives were evaluated using the ISEE system?

Three structural alternatives were assessed: a flow diversion through the Chambly Canal, a selective excavation with a submerged weir, and the latter combined with an additional minor diversion through the canal.

What inputs and methods does ISEE use to generate hydraulic maps?

ISEE uses time-series water levels from the LCRR Water Balance Model and interpolates 2D hydrodynamic data layers to recreate hydraulics while accounting for seasonal plant growth, ice cover, tributary inputs, dam management, and backwater effects.

Sep 15, 2026

Uploaded by Graffin