OBJECTIVE OF THE INVENTORY

The objective of this database is to compile all the relevant information about coastal ocean monitoring programs which currently exist within the State of California. The intention is not to store and distribute raw data generated by coastal monitoring programs. Rather, the intention is to compile information about existing programs. The goal is to create an inventory of which agencies conduct ocean monitoring, where they sample, what they measure, and ultimately how they analyze samples. Most importantly, where and how additional information (including raw data) can be obtained will be supplied for those individuals who wish to pursue more details about specific programs.

PROGRAM INCLUSION CRITERIA

Coastal monitoring in California has a long history. Some programs are well-defined while others may be more nebulous. Therefore, specific spatial, temporal, parameter, and programmatic criteria were established to facilitate the creation of a complete inventory and efficient database. The criteria are:

(1) Spatial - Marine or estuarine waters of the state up to head of tide. Receiving water monitoringinformation will be targeted;
(2) Temporal - Multi-year, ongoing studies and historical studies of great significance;
(3) Parameter - Water quality, water quality indicators, or other measurements specifically linked to water quality;
(4) Programmatic - Documented programs with established Quality Assurance Project Plans (QAPP), and publicly available data.

LEVELS OF DETAIL

This database has been designed with three distinct tiers. Each tier incorporates a stepwise increase in detail and specificity of monitoring elements. The degree of specificity regarding monitoring elements are tied to the information return from database queries.

These levels include:

(1) Tier I - Text-based information only;
(2) Tier II - Relational database design defined by program level information;
(3) Tier III - Relational database design defined by station level information.

Tier II includes all of the information in Tier I, but also includes additional program information all within a relational database
structure. In this way, the database can be queried for the information in numerous ways such as by region, by type of discharge, or by type of media or test parameter. One can then use the query output to compare monitoring elements across programs. Figure 2 details the database design including fields of interest and relational fields for which to build queries.

Tier III includes all of the information in Tier II, but also includes additional information about individual sampling sites all within a database structure. In this way, the database can be queried in numerous ways such as where individual measurements made. Unlike Tiers I and II, input of station level information for Tier III is optional.

PROGRAM ELEMENTS

Tier I

Figure 1 describes the elements which will be included in Tier I descriptions of coastal monitoring programs. Elements include general information and abstract, parameters, methods, and data storage. This information can be available as hardcopy, or as output from the Tier II database in a predefined output report form.

Tier II

Figure 2 describes the elements which will be included in Tier II inventory of coastal monitoring programs. The elements will be woven into seven database tables. These tables include tblProgram, tblProgramInfo, tblFacility, tblParameters, tblStations, tblContact, tblReferences. The tblProgram will be the master table which will inventory singular program information such as program descriptors, start and end dates, abstracts, and data availability. The tblProgramInfo will contain the spatial and geographic regions for each program. The tblFacility will provide the discharge information such as type of discharge, receiving water type, NPDES Number, and flow. The tblParameters will inventory the methodological and indicator information such as type of media, type of test, type of parameters, analytical methods and detection limits. The tblStations will inventory the latitude and longitude datum for each station sampled by a monitoring program (where available). The tblContact will list the contact personnel information including street and e-mail addresses plus phone and fax numbers. The tblReferences will include important documents specific to each program. Field descriptions and constrained lists of field entries are provided in Appendix A.

SOFTWARE
The current database was compiled in Microsoft^® Access 97. This documentation assumes readers are familiar with this software.

DATA ENTRY INSTRUCTIONS

There are several methods which can be utilized to enter data to this database. Appendix B contains a data entry form which can be used to survey the necessary data for Tier I and Tier II requirements. Appendix A, which lists all of the database fields and descriptions, also contains data entry instructions. This can be utilized by data entry personnel operating in Access 97 record editor, or some other compatible software format.

Figure 1. Components of Tier I data reporting scheme.

General Information and Abstract:
ð Program Name:

ð Conducting Agency:

ð Contact:

<Name>
<Address>
<Phone>
<e-mail>

ð Period of record, Latest Date:

ð Abstract:

Measured Parameters
ð Test Media:

ð Test Matrix:

ð Test Types:

ð Parameters Measured:

Methods
ð Sampling Methods:
ð Region Sampled:
ð Number of Stations (Total):

Data Storage
ð Data Available:
ð Database Description:
ð URL:
ð References:

Figure 2. Relational database structure in Tier II.

This will be a figure showing Tier II tables and their relational fields

APPENDIX A
Database Field Descriptions and Data Entry Instructions
See excel file APP_A.xls

APPENDIX B
Data Entry/Survey Form
See excel file APP_B.xls