An HEC-FIA alternative is a combination of Emergency Planning Zones, Inundation Configuration, Structure Inventory, Critical Infrastructure, Impact Response Information, Agricultural Data, and computation settings. If the HEC-FIA project contains more than one alternative (for summer and winter crop conditions, for instance), multiple HEC-FIA model alternatives can be created for each condition.

For further information on how to develop the information required in defining an alternative in HEC-FIA, see the HEC-FIA User's Manual.

Importing an HEC-FIA Alternative

To import an HEC-FIA alternative: 

  1. From the Watershed Panel in the Setup Module, right-click on the HEC-FIA icon and select Import. The Import Alternatives dialog will open.
    Import Alternatives Dialog
  2. Click Select/Add Project, and a file browsing dialog will open.
  3. From the file browsing dialog, navigate to and select the HEC-FIA project file (.prj extension) you wish to import.
  4. Click Open, and the file browsing dialog will close.
  5. From the Import Alternatives dialog, select an alternative click Import Alternatives. The HEC-FIA alternative is imported, and a confirmation dialog will open.
  6. Click OK to close the confirmation dialog.
  7. Click Close, and Save your watershed.

Editing an HEC-FIA Alternative

To edit an HEC-FIA alternative:

  1. From the Watershed Pane in the Setup Module, right-click on the HEC-FIA alternative you want to edit. Select Alternative from the shortcut menu, and the Edit Alternative dialog will open.
  2. Edit the HEC-FIA alternative as desired.
    HEC-FIA Alternative Editor
  3. Click OK, and the Edit Alternative dialog will close.
  4. Save your watershed.

Modifications to the Adjusted Price Index values can be made from the Emergency Planning Zone Editor. To access the Emergency Planning Zone Editor, right-click on an HEC-FIA model alternative from either the table in the Modeling Module or from the Watershed Pane in the Setup Module, and select Emergency Planning Zones. Then click on the Adjusted Price Index Tab.

Emergency Planning Zones Editor Dialog

Copying an HEC-FIA Alternative

To copy an HEC-FIA alternative:

  1. Launch HEC-FIA from the CAVI taskbar.
  2. In the HEC-FIA watershed pane, right-click on the HEC-FIA alternative you wish to copy and select Save As from the shortcut menu.
    HEC-FIA Alternative Shortcut Menu
  3. The HEC-FIA Save Alternative As dialog will open. Specify a new alternative name in the Name field, and fill out the Description field (if desired). Leave the default location in the Directory field.
    HEC-FIA Save As Dialog
  4. Click the OK button to complete the copy process. The copied alternative will now be shown in the HEC-FIA Alternative editor.

Deleting an HEC-FIA Alternative

To delete an HEC-FIA alternative: 

  1. Launch HEC-FIA from the CAVI taskbar.
  2. In the HEC-FIA watershed pane, right-click on the HEC-FIA alternative you wish to delete and select Delete from Study from the shortcut menu.
  3. Click Yes in the confirmation dialog.