National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Quality Assurance Project Plan Version 2.1 May 2016 Page 1 of 134 United States Environmental Protection Agency Office of Water Office of Environmental Information Washington, DC EPA No. 841-R-14-005 National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Quality Assurance Project Plan Version 2.1 May 2016 National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Quality Assurance Project Plan Version 2.1 May 2016 Page 2 of 134 National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Quality Assurance Project Plan Version 2.1 May 2016 Page 3 of 134 QUALITY ASSURANCE PROJECT PLAN REVIEW & DISTRIBUTION ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND COMMITMENT TO IMPLEMENT for National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 I/We have read the QAPP and the methods manuals for the National Coastal Condition Assessment listed below. Our agency/organization agrees to abide by its requirements for work performed under the National Coastal Condition Assessment. Please check the appropriate documents. Quality Assurance Project Plan □ Field Operations Manual □ Site Evaluation Guidelines □ Laboratory Methods Manual □ Field Crew leads: I also certify that I attended an NCCA 2015 training and that all members of my crew have received training in NCCA protocols □ Print Name Title (Cooperator’s Principal Investigator) Organization Signature Date Field Crews: Please return the signed original to the Logistics Contractor. The Logistics Contractor will ensure all parties have signed the QA forms, compile them and submit to the EPA Project QA Coordinator. Send your forms to: Chris Turner, Great Lakes Environmental Center, Inc.; 739 Hastings Street; Traverse City, MI 49686. [email protected] Labs and others: Please return the signed original to Kendra Forde who will ensure all parties have signed the QA forms, compile them, and submit them to the EPA QA Coordinator. Send your forms to: Kendra Forde, US EPA; 1200 Pennsylvania Ave, NW (4503T); Washington, DC 20460. [email protected] Retain a copy for your files. National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Quality Assurance Project Plan Version 2.1 May 2016 Page 4 of 134 Notices The National Coastal Condition Assessment (NCCA) 2015 Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) and related documents are based on the previous Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program’s (EMAP) National Coastal Assessment (NCA) conducted in 2001 – 2004 as well as the National Coastal Condtion Assessment 2010. The complete documentation of overall NCCA project management, design, methods, and standards is contained in four companion documents, including: • National Coastal Condition Assessment: Quality Assurance Project Plan (EPA 841-R-14-005) • National Coastal Condition Assessment: Field Operations Manual (EPA 841-R-14-007) • National Coastal Condition Assessment: Laboratory Methods Manual (EPA 841-R-14-008) • National Coastal Condition Assessment: Site Evaluation Guidelines (EPA 841-R-14-006) This document (QAPP) contains elements of the overall project management, data quality objectives, measurement and data acquisition, and information management for the NCCA 2015. Methods described in this document are to be used specifically in work relating to the NCCA 2015 and related projects. All Project Cooperators should follow these guidelines. Mention of trade names or commercial products in this document does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use. More details on specific methods for site evaluation, field sampling, and laboratory processing can be found in the appropriate companion document(s). The citation for this document is: U.S. EPA. National Coastal Condition Assessment Quality Assurance Project Plan. United States Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water, Office of Wetlands, Oceans and Watersheds. Washington, D.C. EPA 841-R-14-005. 2014. National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Quality Assurance Project Plan Version 2.1 May 2016 Page 6 of 134 Table of Contents Notices ........................................................................................................................... 4 Approval Page ............................................................................................................... 5 Table of Contents .......................................................................................................... 6 Acronyms ..................................................................................................................... 15 NCCA Executive Summary ......................................................................................... 17 Distribution List ........................................................................................................... 20 Project Planning and Management ............................................................................ 22 1.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................22 1.2 Scope of the Quality Assurance Project Plan .....................................................23 1.3 Project Organization ..........................................................................................23 1.4 Project Design ...................................................................................................28 1.5 Project Schedule ................................................................................................30 1.6 Overview of Field Operations .............................................................................30 1.7 Overview of Laboratory Operations ....................................................................34 1.8 Data Analysis .....................................................................................................36 1.9 Peer Review ......................................................................................................36 2.0 Data Quality Objectives ................................................................................... 37 2.1 Data Quality Objectives for the National Coastal Condition Assessment ............38 2.2 Measurement Quality Objectives .......................................................................38 2.2.1 Method Detection Limits (Laboratory Reporting Level (Sensitivity)) ...........38 2.2.2 Sampling Precision and Bias .....................................................................39 2.2.3 Sampling Accuracy ...................................................................................41 2.2.4 Taxonomic Precision and Accuracy ..........................................................42 2.2.5 Completeness ...........................................................................................43 2.2.6 Comparability ............................................................................................43 2.2.7 Representativeness ..................................................................................44 3. Site Selection Design ....................................................................................... 44 3.1. Probability Based Sampling Design and Site Selection ......................................44 3.2. Survey Design for the Marine Waters .................................................................45 3.3. Survey Design for the Great Lakes ....................................................................45 3.4 Revisit Sites .............................................................................................................46 National Coastal Condition Assessment 2015 Quality Assurance Project Plan Version 2.1 May 2016 Page 7 of 134 4.0 Information Management ................................................................................. 46 4.1 Roles and Responsibilities .................................................................................46 4.2 State-Based Data Management .........................................................................49 4.3 Overview of System Structure ............................................................................50 4.3.1 Data Flow Conceptual Model .................................................................51 4.3.2 Simplified Data Flow Description ...........................................................51 4.4 Core Information Management Standards .........................................................53 4.5 Data Formats .....................................................................................................53 Public Accessibility .............................................................................................54 4.6 Data Transfer Protocols .....................................................................................55 4.7 Data Quality and Results Validation ...................................................................56 4.7.1 Data Entry, Scanned, or Transferred Data .............................................56 4.7.2 Analytical Results Validation ..................................................................57 4.7.3 Database Changes ...................................................................................58 4.8 Metadata ............................................................................................................58 4.9 Information Management Operations .................................................................58 4.9.1 Computing Infrastructure .......................................................................58 4.9.2 Data Security and Accessibility .................................................................58 4.9.3 Life Cycle ..................................................................................................59