Coastal Vulnerability Model - How to use my own Wind and Wave data

We would like to run the InVEST Coastal Vulnerability Model using our own Wind and Wave data, instead of the WavewatchIII (WW3) data.

We have our own wind and wave statistics for various shore points. How can we implement them in the InVEST model?

From what I can see from Appendix B of the InVEST documentation (Coastal Vulnerability Model — InVEST documentation), I shall calculate by myself the Relative Exposure Index and the Wave power for each of the 16 equiangular sectors. Then I must create a table (shape file) similar to the one of the standard WW3, which can be used as input of the model. Am I correct? Shall I use the instruction provide in the section “Wind exposure” and “Wave exposure” in the InVEST documentation to calculate REI_VX, REI_PCTX , WavP_X, WavPPCTX, and V10PCT_X by using my own wind and wave data? Or is there a way to provide to the InVEST model just the wind and wave statistics and it calculate by its own REI_VX, REI_PCTX , WavP_X, and WavPPCTX?

Thanks for the help!

Hi @lorenzo.minola ,

You are correct that you will need to reproduce the table you see in the default WW3 dataset. Specifically, you will need data for the 5 variables (16 sectors each) that are described in Appendix B. The details for calculating each variable are given in that same appendix section.

The equations in the “Wind Exposure” and “Wave Exposure” sections of “How it Works” are different and should not be used to prepare the replacement WW3 data. These sections describe how the model uses the WW3 data.

Perhaps one point of confusion: The variables REI_VX and REI_PCTX do not actually represent REI values, rather they represent wind velocity statistics that will be used by the model to calculate REI.

Best,

Here is a related conversation about the meaning of some of those variables:

Hi Dave,

Thank you so much for your replay, which clarify the doubts I had.

My confusion raised from the fact that the variables REI_VX and REI_PCTX represent wind velocity statistics, and not the actual REI (which is calculated by the model given the wind inputs I provide).

So, if I got it right now, V10PCT_X is exactly the same as REI_VX (same wind statistics). But if REI_VX represents wind statistics used by the model to calculate the REI, V10PCT_X represents wind statistics used by the model to calculate wave power from fetch. Am I correct? Thanks a lot again for your help!

Best,