I&M Data Management Meeting Las Vegas, Nevada March 12, 2002

1. Vital Signs Water Quality Data Management STORET, Metadata, and the NPS Water Quality Database Templates by Dean Tucker NPS Water Resources Division I&M Data Management Meeting Las Vegas, Nevada March 12, 2002

2. NPS Vital Signs Monitoring Networks Physical Chemical Other Biological

3. STORET Background EPA Database for Ambient Water Quality and Biological Data

4. STORET Background • STORage and RETrieval • Began in DOI in 1964 • 1 Million (plus) Sites • 200 Million (plus) Observations

5. STORET Background At a conservative $10.00 per obs. (field plus lab work), data are worth $2 billion!!!

6. STORET Background • State Environmental & Health Organizations • Federal Agencies (EPA, NPS, BuRec, USFS) • Citizen Volunteers • Watershed Managers

7. Old STORET STORET Legacy Data Center New STORET STORET Background

8. STORET Background • 17 Two-Day Joint Application Design 1991-92 • Links to GIS • Data of Documented Quality • User Validation • Four National Conferences, 1991-1996 • Prototype Testing by 200 Users, 1997 • Feedback Incorporated into System

9. STORET Background • Features • Data of Documented Quality • Graphical User Interface • Data Standards for Data Sharing • Implementation • Scaleable - Watershed to National • Locally Owned and Operated • EPA Maintained • Public Read-Only Access to EPA Data Warehouse NPSTORET

10. Organization Programs Projects Data Loggers Trips Simplified STORET Schematic Sampling Stations Operating Periods Station Visits Monitoring Activities Results

11. STORET Background • Sample Medium • Air • Bottom Sediment • Soil • Water • Biological • Individual • Subject Taxa • Tissue • Subject Taxa • Bio- Part • Species Abundance • Aquatic Vegetation • Terrestrial Plants • Benthic Macroinverts • Birds • Reptiles • Amphibians • Bacteria/Viral • Phytoplankton/Zooplankton • Fish/Nekton Medium Intent Community

12. STORET Background • Field Measurement/Observations • Replicate Measurement • Habitat Evaluation • Observation • Measurement Samples • Routine • Field Replicate • Depletion Replicate • Created from Sample • Composite- with Parents • Sample from Sample • Composite- W/O Parents • Integrated Time Series • Integrated Flow Proportioned • Integrated Horizontal Profile • Integrated Vertical Profile

13. Why STORET? • Under the Clean Water Act, states are responsible for developing and enforcing water quality standards on all lands within their boundary. • Approximately 80% of states used legacy STORET. • Twenty-one states already have data in new STORET as of 3/05/2002.

14. States with Data in STORET National Data Warehouse as of 03/05/2002

15. Why STORET? • Robust, full-featured, well-supported database • NPS runs its copy of STORET; EPA runs the National Data Warehouse • Public can access data at: http://www.epa.gov/storet

16. Why STORET? • Fully compliant with ITFM and NWQMC metadata recommendations • NPS-77 states that the NPS should provide water quality monitoring data to STORET • NPS has made a significant investment in old STORET with 2.5 million observations at 17,477 stations for 191 parks

17. Reporting Vital Signs NetworkWater Quality Data • Who: • Why: • When: • What: • How: Every Vital Signs Network Required by Implementation Plan At Least Annually NWQMC Metadata Elements Access Templates

18. Terms Of Reference National Water-Quality Monitoring Council Approved by the Advisory Committee on Water Information February 18, 1998 Revisions approved by Council August 24, 2000. Purpose, scope, applicability, and functions Purpose -- The overall purpose of the National Council is to champion and support water-quality information aspects of natural-resources management and environmental protection. The National Council has a broad mandate that encompasses water quality monitoring and assessment that includes considerations of water quality in relation to water quantity. The purpose of the National Council is to coordinate and provide guidance and technical support for the voluntary implementation of the recommendations presented in the Strategy for Improving Water-Quality Monitoring in the United States (the strategy) by government agencies and the private sector. The intent of the strategy, presented in the final report of the ITFM, is to stimulate the monitoring improvements needed to achieve comparable and scientifically defensible information on interpretations and evaluations of water-quality conditions. (http://water.usgs.gov/wicp/acwi/monitoring)

19. Methods and Data Comparability Board (http://wi.water.usgs.gov/pmethods/index.html) Chartered under the NWQMC Recommend monitoring approaches that facilitate collaboration and yield comparable data and assessment results Core set of data elements (metadata) for reporting water quality monitoring results

20. Track the: Who: What: Where: When: Why: How: of the monitoring effort NWQMC/MDCB Recommended Standard Water Quality Data Elements (http://wi.water.usgs.gov/pmethods/elements/elements.html)

21. Who? NWQMC/MDCB Recommended Standard Water Quality Data Elements 1.0 Contact Contact Information: • Data Owner • Sample Collector, Measurer, or Observer • Lab Analyzer

22. What? NWQMC/MDCB Recommended Standard Water Quality Data Elements 2.0 Results What was measured/observed/analyzed?: • Analyte, Constituent, Parameter, Contaminant, Organism, Characteristic • Filtered Fraction, Sample Medium • Units, Field or Lab Measured • Chemical Abstract Service Number, Biological Systematic Identifier, ITIS Serial Number

23. Where? NWQMC/MDCB Recommended Standard Water Quality Data Elements 5.0 Location Locational Information for Sample or Measurement/Observation: • Station ID • Name of Waterbody: (http://geonames.usgs.gov/gnishome.html) • Station Type (e.g. stream/river, canal, spring, estuary, etc.) • Latitude/Longitude Coordinates (datum, source, scale, accuracy) • Elevation (datum, source, scale, and units) • Bottom Depth of Station and Units • Geographic Data and Other Attributes

24. When? NWQMC/MDCB Recommended Standard Water Quality Data Elements 4.0 Date/Time When was the sample collected/analyzed or measurement/observation made?: • Begin Date/End Date • Begin Time/End Time • Collection, Processing, and Analysis

25. Why? NWQMC/MDCB Recommended Standard Water Quality Data Elements 3.0 Reason for Sampling Project Monitoring Purpose, Goals, Objectives • Overall Project • Individual Stations • Individual Samples reconnaissance/occurrence survey trend analysis permit compliance storm event research regulatory benchmark bioaccumulation deposition other as applicable

26. How? NWQMC/MDCB Recommended Standard Water Quality Data Elements 6.0 Sample Collection Sample Collection: • Sample Type Field Measurement/Observation Sample Sample Created from Sample Composite Sample w/ Parents Quality Control Sample • Media Sampled • Sample Temperature • Sample Identification • Sample Collection Method • Sample Preservation/Treatment Metadata Capstone:

27. How? NWQMC/MDCB Recommended Standard Water Quality Data Elements 7.0 Sample Analysis Sample Analysis: • Analytical Method Number • Sample Size • Serial Dilution • Composite Sample • Run Batch • (Spiking) Amount or Dose Added • Detection/Quantitation Limits, Types Metadata Capstone:

28. NWQMC/MDCB Recommended Standard Water Quality Data Elements Who What • Recommended • Minimum Set • As Applicable • Chemical and Microbiological Where How When Why

29. Reporting Vital Signs NetworkWater Quality Data • Natural Resource Database Template Input Screens • Projects - Why • Stations - Where • Metadata - How • Results – What, When, Who • Transmit Files to WRD Along with QAPP, SOP, and Other Relevant Documentation • QA/QC and STORET Import Module (SIM) • Upload to STORET National Data Warehouse

30. Useful Web Site References • STORET Web Site: http://www.epa.gov/storet. • NWQMC Water Quality Data Elements: http://wi.water.usgs.gov/pmethods/elements/elements.html. • National Water Quality Monitoring Council: http://water.usgs.gov/wicp/acwi/monitoring.  • Natural Resource Database Template: http://www.nature.nps.gov/im/apps/template.

31. Vital Signs Water Quality Data Management STORET, Metadata, and the NPS Water Quality Database Templates by Dean Tucker NPS Water Resources Division I&M Data Management Meeting Las Vegas, Nevada March 12, 2002