This paper discusses the design and implementation
of the ‘Ike Wai Hawai‘i Groundwater Recharge Tool, an
application for providing data and analyses of the impacts of
land-cover and climate modifications on groundwater-recharge
rates for the island of O‘ahu. This application uses simulation
data based on a set of 29 land-cover types and two rainfall
scenarios to provide users with real-time recharge calculations for
interactively defined land-cover modifications. Two visualizations,
representing the land cover for the island and the resultant
groundwater-recharge rates, and a set of metrics indicating the
changes to groundwater recharge for relevant areas of the map
are provided to present a set of easily interpreted outcomes
based on the user-defined simulations. Tools are provided to give
users varying degrees of control over the granularity of data
input and output, allowing for the quick production of a roughly
defined simulation, or more precise land-cover models that can
be exported for further analysis. Heuristics are used to provide
a responsive user interface and performant integration with the
database containing the full set of simulation data. This tool is
designed to provide user-friendly access to the information on
the impacts of land-cover and climate changes on groundwater recharge
rates needed to make data-driven decisions.