After drawing a stream alignment in the display area, there are many options available for editing your stream alignment. To edit your stream alignment, you must be in the Watershed Setup Module. The Zoom Tool can be used to help magnify the stream network, thus providing more detail to make editing the stream alignment easier.

This section describes the following capabilities for editing your Stream Alignment:

  • how to refine and re-shape your stream alignment (by moving/adding/deleting vertex points of the stream elements)
  • how to review stream stationing and provide a stream element description (by using the stream element editor)
  • how to rename and delete stream elements
  • how to add and edit stream nodes (for defining stream stationing)
  • how to move and edit stream junctions
  • how to reverse the flow direction of a stream element

  • how to disconnect a stream element

Since the Stream Alignment may be referenced by other models, care should be used when making any changes to it.

Reshaping a Stream

Reshaping a stream is performed by repositioning (moving) the vertices that form the stream element.

To move a vertex of an existing Stream Element:

  • Using the Stream Alignment Tool , double-click on the stream you want to reshape. The stream you selected will turn red and all the vertices of that stream element will turn blue.

  • Click on the vertex you want to move, and drag it to a new location, as illustrated in "Figure: Reshaping a Stream".

    Figure: Reshaping a Stream

Adding Vertices to a Stream

To add a vertex to an existing stream element:

  • With the Stream Alignment Tool selected, double-click on the stream so that the vertices are visible—they should appear as blue dots.
  • Place the pointer on the selected stream where you want to add a vertex. Hold down the Ctrl key and click.  A new blue dot will appear on the selected stream where you have added a new vertex.

Deleting Vertices from a Stream

To delete a vertex from an existing stream element:

  • With the Stream Alignment Tool selected, double-click on the stream so that the vertices are visible—they should appear as blue dots.
  • Hold down the Shift+Ctrl keys and click on the vertex point to be deleted. The blue vertex point will disappear from the stream element, and the stream will straighten between the two adjacent vertices.

The Stream Editor

A Stream Editor ("Figure: Stream Editor") is not really an editor but rather a report that shows the list of nodes that belong to the stream and their positions. The nodes and their positions are not editable from the table. The only editable field on this editor is the Description.

Figure: Stream Editor

 
To open the Stream Editor:

  • Using the Stream Alignment Tool , right-click on the stream you want to edit.

  • Select Edit Stream Element from the context menu ("Figure: Stream Alignment Context Menu") to open the Stream Editor.

    Figure: Stream Alignment Context Menu

The Stream Editor fields include:

Name: This is the name of the stream element you selected. However, you can view information for any stream in the Stream Alignment by either selecting it from the Name selector or by using the left and right arrows (navigator buttons) to click through the available streams.

Description: To edit the Description of the stream, you can type directly into the textbox or click the button at the end of the Description textbox to access the larger Enter Description dialog ("Figure: Enter Description Dialog").

Figure: Enter Description Dialog

Node List: the table below the Description is the Node list. It lists the nodes from upstream to downstream and shows the Station, Easting, and Northing of each node. Since the position of the nodes cannot be edited from the Stream Editor, use the Stream Node Editor to edit the stream stationing of the nodes.

Renaming a Stream Element

To rename a stream element:

  • Using the Stream Alignment Tool , right-click on the stream element.

  • Select Rename Stream Element from the context menu.
    Enter a new Name (and optional Description) for the stream element in the Rename Stream dialog ("Figure: Rename Stream").

    Figure: Rename Stream

Deleting a Stream Element

To delete a stream element:

  • Using the Stream Alignment Tool , right-click on the stream element.
  • Select Delete Stream Element from the context menu.

  • When the confirmation message appears ("Figure: Confirmation Message when Deleting a Stream Element"), select Yes to delete the stream or No to cancel the delete.

    Figure: Confirmation Message when Deleting a Stream Element

Inserting a Stream Node

By default, ResSim generates beginning and ending stream nodes for each stream element. Also, stream nodes are automatically created where stream elements connect (stream junctions). Since stream nodes are used for establishing the stream stationing, you may want to include additional stream nodes along your stream element for locations where you want to define specific stream stationing.

To insert a stream node on an existing Stream Alignment:

  • Using the Stream Node Tool , hold down the Ctrl key and right-click on the Stream Alignment in the place where the stream node is to be inserted.

  • When you right-click on the stream station node, a context menu appears ("Figure: Stream Node Context Menu").

    Figure: Stream Node Context Menu

  • From the context menu on the stream node, you can choose Edit Node, which will bring up the Stream Node Editor illustrated in "Figure: Stream Node Editor".

    Figure: Stream Node Editor

    Remember: other models that share the watershed (e.g., HEC-FIA) may use the same stream alignment, so be sure to confirm with other modelers before making any changes to the stream alignment including deleting and re-stationing streams.

Editing a Stream Node

The Stream Node Editor ("Figure: Stream Node Editor") displays the location information for the node. The Easting and Northing are for your information only and should not be edited. The Station is the distance in map units of the stream node from the downstream-most end of the stream element.

Use Default Stationing—this check box is checked by default. When checked, the station of the node is not editable.

If you want to specify the station (distance) for the node on the stream element, then uncheck the Use Default Stationing checkbox. This will make the Station field editable. Enter the relative distance (from the downstream end of the stream element) of the node directly into the Station field, then click OK.

NOTE—changing the station of a stream node does not change the node's position along the stream element. Instead, it changes the relative (piecewise) stationing of the stream element.

Deleting a Stream Node

Since stream nodes define the stream stationing that may be referenced by other models, care should be used when deleting stream nodes.

To delete a stream node from an existing Stream Alignment:

  • Find the stream node you wish to delete.

  • Using the Stream Node Tool , right-click on the stream node.

  • Select Delete Node from the context menu.

  • A Confirm Delete message will display ("Figure: Confirm Delete Dialog") asking you whether you really want to delete the selected stream node.

    Figure: Confirm Delete Dialog


  • Click Yes and the message will close, and the stream node will be deleted from the stream element.

Moving a Stream Junction

When two stream elements intersect (e.g., at a confluence), a Stream Junction is automatically created. A stream junction represents multiple stream nodes at one location and is drawn in the Map Display with a dark green dot surrounded by a bright green halo ("Figure: Stream Junction"). Although ResSim generates default stream junctions when you connect one stream to another in the Stream Alignment, you can move them as needed.

Figure: Stream Junction


To move a Stream Junction along an existing Stream Alignment:

  • Using the Stream Node Tool , double-click on the stream junction. The stream junction will turn dark green and will have small squares called move handles at each corner ("Figure: Stream Junction with Move Handles").

    Figure: Stream Junction with Move Handles


  • Drag the stream junction along the (downstream) stream element to its new position.

Editing a Stream Junction

To specify the stream stationing of the stream nodes at a Stream Junction:

The Stream Junction Editor displays the list of Stream Nodes associated with a stream junction and allows you to edit the stationing of each of the nodes by deselecting the "Use Default Stationing" box and entering the desired station. Did you notice that the Stream Junction Editor is a just a special form of the Stream Node Editor?

Deleting a Stream Junction

Occasionally, due to user or software error, a stream junction is created connecting a stream to the wrong stream at the confluence.  To delete the stream junction, you simply need to disconnect the stream that ends (or begins) at the junction. See "Disconnecting a Stream Element" for details.

Reversing the Direction of a Stream

If you find that you have inadvertently drawn your stream element in the wrong direction (i.e., downstream to upstream when it should be upstream to downstream), don't and redraw it; reverse it. To reverse the direction of a stream element:

  • Using the Stream Alignment Tool , right-click on the stream element and select Reverse Direction from the context menu.

  • A warning message ("Figure: Confirm Reverse Direction of Stream Element") will open asking you whether you really want to reverse the direction of the stream element.

    Figure: Confirm Reverse Direction of Stream Element


  • Click Yes. The warning message will close, and the stream element's direction will be reversed.

Disconnecting a Stream Element

One stream element may connect to another stream element at a Stream Junction (the confluence of two streams). If, for some reason, you need to disconnect one stream element from another, you can do so.
To disconnect a stream element from another stream element:

  • Using the Stream Alignment Tool , right-click on the stream element you want to disconnect and select either Disconnect Upstream or Disconnect Downstream, as appropriate, from the context menu ("Figure: Confirm Reverse Direction of Stream Element").

    Figure: Stream Alignment - Context Menu


  • The stream element will now be disconnected from the other stream element ("Figure: Stream Alignment - Context Menu"). In the display area, the end of the disconnected stream will be drawn a short distance away from the stream node where the stream junction had been and the stream junction (bright green halo) will disappear, leaving behind a stream node where the stream junction had been. The stream node that was left behind is innocuous, but if you wish to remove it, see "Deleting a Stream Node".

    Figure: Disconnected Streams