Research and Quality Assurance Methods Used in the EMAP Prairie Wetlands Pilot Study

摘要

This document provides an interim summary of the research methods and quality assurance (QA) activities used during the Prairie Wetlands Pilot Study, which is part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)'s Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP). The Prairie Wetlands Pilot Study is the first field exercise to test EMAP indicators and their ability to detect differences in the condition of wetlands located in the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of the North Central United States. The research, conducted by scientists at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center (NPWRC), Jamestown, North Dakota, was planned and implemented in cooperation with EMAP-Wetlands staff at the U.S. EPA Environmental Research Laboratory, Corvallis (ERLC). Indicators include landscape characterization, waterfowl production, vegetation, water quality, water regime, macroinvertebrate and amphibian composition and abundance, amphibian stress, sediment accretion, and soil and sediment characteristics. Data and samples were collected during the 1992 and 1993 field seasons.