National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Technical Support Document U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Wetlands, Oceans and Watersheds Office of Research and Development Washington, DC 20460 July 2021 National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Technical Support Document U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2020. National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Technical Support Document. EPA‐841-R-20-002. Office of Water and Office of Research and Development. Washington, D.C. https://www.epa.gov/national-aquatic-resource-surveys/ncca 2 National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Technical Support Document TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures ....................................................................................................................................................... 8 List of Tables ........................................................................................................................................................ 9 List of Acronyms ............................................................................................................................................... 12 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 14 1.1 Additional Resources for Survey Operations ................................................................................ 14 1.2 Additional Report Materials ............................................................................................................. 15 1.3 References .......................................................................................................................................... 16 2 Quality Assurance ..................................................................................................................................... 17 2.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 17 2.2 Survey Design .................................................................................................................................... 18 Statistical Design .......................................................................................................................18 Completeness.............................................................................................................................18 Comparability ............................................................................................................................20 2.3 Quality Assurance in Field Operations .......................................................................................... 21 Field Method Pilot Testing ......................................................................................................21 Training of Field Trainers and Assistance Visitors ..............................................................21 Field Crew Training ..................................................................................................................21 Field Assistance Visits ..............................................................................................................22 Revisits of Selected Field Sites ................................................................................................22 2.4 Laboratory Quality Assurance And Quality Control .................................................................... 22 Basic Capabilities .......................................................................................................................23 Benthic Macroinvertebrate Identifications ............................................................................23 Chemical Analyses ....................................................................................................................25 Sediment Toxicity Analyses .....................................................................................................25 2.5 Data Management And Review ...................................................................................................... 26 2.6 NCCA 2015 Report .......................................................................................................................... 26 2.7 References .......................................................................................................................................... 27 3 Selection of Probability Sites ................................................................................................................... 29 3.1 Objectives ........................................................................................................................................... 29 3.2 Estuarine Design ............................................................................................................................... 29 Target Population .....................................................................................................................29 Sample Frame ............................................................................................................................30 3 National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Technical Support Document Survey Design ............................................................................................................................30 Stratification ...............................................................................................................................30 Unequal Probability Categories ...............................................................................................32 Panels ..........................................................................................................................................32 Expected Sample Size ..............................................................................................................32 Site Usage and Replacement ....................................................................................................34 3.3 Great Lakes Nearshore Design ....................................................................................................... 34 Nearshore Target Population ..................................................................................................34 Nearshore Sample Frame ........................................................................................................34 Survey Design ............................................................................................................................35 Stratification ...............................................................................................................................35 Unequal Probability Categories ...............................................................................................35 Panels ..........................................................................................................................................35 Expected Sample Size ..............................................................................................................35 Site Usage and Replacement ....................................................................................................36 3.4 Great Lakes Embayment Design .................................................................................................... 37 Embayment Target Population ...............................................................................................37 Embayment Sample Frame .....................................................................................................37 Embayment Survey Design .....................................................................................................37 Stratification ...............................................................................................................................38 Unequal Probability Categories ...............................................................................................38 Panels ..........................................................................................................................................38 Expected Embayment Sample Size ........................................................................................38 3.5 Evaluation Process ............................................................................................................................ 39 3.6 Statistical Analysis.............................................................................................................................. 41 3.7 References .......................................................................................................................................... 42 4 Benthic Macroinvertebrates .................................................................................................................... 43 4.1 Overview ............................................................................................................................................ 43 4.2 Field Collection.................................................................................................................................. 44 4.3 Data Preparation ............................................................................................................................... 45 4.4 Data Analysis ....................................................................................................................................