Why was it developed?
KRIS was initially created to track water quality trends in the Klamath Basin,
including cold water fish habitat, which is considered a “beneficial use"
of most northern California streams under the State and federal Clean Water
Acts. KRIS also provides an essential tool for tracking the effectiveness of
the State-federal Klamath River and Trinity River fisheries restoration programs.
KRIS/Coho was developed to provide information to agencies and the interested
public on the condition of water quality, fish populations and their habitat
on Pacific Lumber Company lands, to help with agency and public review of the
company's July, 1998 draft Habitat Conservation Plan.
Why do we need another database?
KRIS is more than a database. This custom program, developed with Borland's
Delphi tools, allows easy access to charts, data sets, photographs and bibliographic
resources through a tab-driven system that is highly user-friendly. KRIS also
has special features that allow less sophisticated computer users to integrate
new data and easily make new charts and graphs. KRIS' charts and photos can
also be cut and pasted into reports. KRIS is, therefore, an ideal tool for agency
employees and grassroots watershed restoration groups to use as a shared monitoring
system.
Does KRIS link with other databases?
Unfortunately, there are few agency projects which manage the variety of data,
which includes photos and remote sensing images, that KRIS does.
Where can you apply the KRIS system?
The KRIS system can be used in any watershed to track the factors that limit
fish production and water quality over time and across watershed locations .
Do you have to be computer literate to use KRIS?
KRIS is a point-and-click, tab-driven system that can be operated easily after
a very brief training. The use of KRIS/Maps and the updating of KRIS' charts
and tables requires a bit more training.
What kind of computer do I need to run KRIS?
KRIS operates on IBM-type personal computers of the 486 or Pentium types. The
original KRIS (Klamath River Basin, Version 1.0, February 1998) was developed
in Windows 3.1 and can run on as little as 8 Mb of RAM. KRIS/Coho is a Windows
95 program and 16 Mb of RAM is needed. When operating KRIS/Maps in ArcView,
24 Mb of RAM is required.
What software do I need to run KRIS?
The KRIS/DB program is free and requires no additional software. To operate
KRIS/Maps requires a licensed copy of AroView 3. la and KRIS/Coho/Maps needs
the Spatial Analyst extension.
Why should I use the KRIS system?
The KRIS system is ideal for fisheries and water quality managers, the interested
public or the academic community. You can review a wide array of data, see key
relationships in charts, read about how and why the data was collected, and
review photos of site conditions and restoration projects. The KRIS system represents
an ideal way of organizing data so that it can be shared between agencies and
with the interested public. It also facilitates updating information and allows
easy generation of figures or illustrations for reports.
What kind of information can I put into the system?
In order for any information system to succeed, the scope and purpose of its
information content must be clearly determined. KRIS focuses on fisheries and
water quality and the factors that effect them. Particular attention is paid
to those factors that are known, or thought to be, the key factors limiting
fish production
How does KRIS help in making land and water management decisions?
KRIS assimilates the most current scientific information for land use managers
and regulators so that they can fully consider this information in their decision-making.
KRI.S can also be easily accessed by the interested public which can help to
build confidence in the decision-making process. Conversely, widespread availability
of the best available scientific information also makes it less likely that
decision-makers will discount science in favor of purely market or political
considerations.
How does KRIS help threatened and endangered salmon?
Rural communities coping with Endangered Species issues are being bombarded
with sometimes confusing information regarding resource conditions and the factors
causing the decline of salmon and steelhead. In the most extreme cases, some
are suggesting that the government will confiscate private land. KRIS can help
convey historical information about salmon populations as well as current status
and trends, including water quality information. By presenting a scientific
overview of the watershed conditions and focused information about water quality
and fish habitat, the public can more easily understand the problems and what
needs to be done to resolve them. For example, if water temperatures are hotter
than required to support coho salmon, which remain in their home-streams for
a year or more, then stream shade canopies really need to be allowed to recover
over time. KRIS also allows scientific monitoring over time to ensure that restoration
efforts are working.
William M. Kier Associates
207 Second Street, Suite B, Sausalito, CA 94965
(415) 331-4505 fax 332-8799
KRIS Webpage
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