Managing the Quality of Environmental Data at EPA Region 5
Data about the environment is necessary in making the right decisions to protect human health and the environment. To keep the data reliable, Region 5 created a strong quality management plan. It focuses on steady quality improvement for the region’s programs and divisions. Region 5 also offers technical guidance and support to gather quality environmental data for state, local and tribal organizations, and to citizens of the region.
The main quality assurance (QA) functions in Region 5 include:
- fulfilling the required agency-wide quality system
- providing technical assistance for the collection of chemical, biological, microbiological and radiological data under:
- Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
- Superfund
- Clean Air
- Clean Water/Safe Drinking Water Acts for the:
- Great Lakes National Program
- RCRA Program
- Superfund Program
- Air Program
- Water Program
- providing technical support/assistance to regional project officers and grantees
- conducting QA evaluations of field sampling and laboratory operations
- reviewing study plans, quality management plans and internal & external data
- reviewing QA documentation in support of grants, cooperative & interagency agreements and contracts
- managing the Environmental Services Assistance Team (ESAT) and national/regional analytical contracts
- providing training/guidance on data quality, laboratory practices/ethics, designated approving officials (DAO’s) and others topics as requested
Program Guidance and Requirements
Standard Operating Procedures
Laboratory and Field Operations
- Winter Runoff of Surface Applied Animal Manure and Process Wastewater
- Quality Assurance Project Plan for the Cool-Ox™ Technology Demonstration at Ashland Manufactured Gas Plant Lakefront Site
- Multi-Site Quality Assurance Project Plan
- EPA's Disapproval of Enbridge Energy's Sampling Analysis and Quality Assurance Plans Related to the Marshall Michigan Oil Spill
- Quality Assurance Project Plan for the Enbridge Oil Response
- Revision 2 of the Enbridge Quality Assurance Project Plan
Quality Assurance Tools
- Quality Assurance Project Plan for Lake Trout and Forage Fish Sampling for Diet Analysis and/or Contaminant Analysis (PDF) (84 pp, 926 K, About PDF)
- Quality Assurance Project Plan for Coho Sampling for Contaminant and Diet Analysis (PDF) (42 pp, 194 K, About PDF)
- Quality Assurance Plan for the Use of Sediment Traps (PDF) (7 pp, 22 K, About PDF)