Preface - Quality Assurance Project Plan and HowTos for DEC Upstate NY Pesticides in Groundwater
Priority: low
Updating: stable
This Cornell Soil and Water Lab DEC-QAPP hypertext web pageset contains the official current version of the QAPP, and separate HowTo scripts that are sewn together by the QAPP outline. This preface is a guide to organization and format of the collection.
Note that this pageset is not edited for the general public. It exists for: - internal project use, - compliance with US EPA review of New York State’s regulatory programs, and - providing ideas to others who plan and carry out water quality monitoring programs of a reconnaissance grade.
Change Log (applicable only to this preface page; each page has its own change log):
| When | Who | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 02 26 | sp17 | Began to populate the QAPP in Microsoft OneNote. Added a first skeleton of the QAPP and placeholder pages for several HowTo scripts. |
| 2021 03 19 | sp17 | First complete structure of this section of the OneNote notebook. All HowTo pages are present as placeholders at least. |
| 2021 09 10 | Sp17 | Expanded to indicate the structure of HowTos. |
| 2021 09 15 | Sp17 | Preparing to send out DOCX exports of the main outline and selected HowTo documents for DEC review. |
| 2021 10 01 | Sp17 | Altered this to reflect adjustments to HowTo pages to support a DOCX export better. |
| 2023 06 01 | Sp17 | Minor edits in prep for second DEC review attempt. |
| 2023 06 14 | Sp17 | Converted to Markdown. Abandoned MS Word export, OneNote as platform. Markdown source of pages will be rendered as HTML, then published online both with MkDocs. |
| 2023 06 29 | Sp17 | Refactored as a subset of the DEC project web pages. |
1. Objectives of the QAPP and HowTos collection
- Be the official QAPP for US EPA oversight purposes.
- Compile all relevant “HowTo” guidance for sample collection, analytical procedures, well installation, data management, and other aspects of the project.
All documents in this collection are individual structured text files composed in the Markdown language, with source code for diagrams in the Mermaid language and links to graphics which are later embedded during the HTML conversion.
This is a work in perpetual progress. The Markdown-to-HTML format was chosen for ease of updating via sharing across computers and people, and for its innate outline and hypertext format.
The Markdown language is converted to HTML for web posting using the Quarto software. There are some flaws in the appearance of Mermaid diagrams in MkDocs’ rendering to HTML.
2. Pages in this Collection
The HowTo page titles inside pages are appended with a completion percentage such as “[10%]” to indicate how mature and up to date they are relative to actual practice. The absence of a percentage means that the item is complete and up to date enough for routine use. There are also headings in most pages indicating their priority for keeping up to date and frequency of recent updates.
The QAPP main page follows a US EPA QAPP structural outline to a large extent, using EPA’s hierarchical numbering system. This uses Heading 1 through Heading 3 section titles.
The HowTo pages follow a looser, variable structure customized to their subject matter and their uses beyond QAPP purposes. Some are also used in other activities of the Soil and Water Lab. Their common format elements are:
- A page title formatted as Heading 1 style, with the completion percentage.
- An administrative intro part.
- A lead paragraph that describes coverage.
- A change log table like that near the top of this page.
- Optiopnally, a list of other HowTos that are most closely associated with the current one.
- A numbered list of page sections, each of which has a title with Markdown style Heading 2:
- Section 1 is typically a list of fine-grained objectives that the HowTo’s activities pursue.
- Sometimes there is an early section about data quality considerations.
- Other numbered components.
The within-page hierarchy is mostly limited to two numbered levels, and the collection can be considered one level above the pages. HowTos are not numbers, their titles are unique. The rendering to HTML provides navigation indices across pages and within the current page. There are many links within page bodies to other pages.
Pages in the collection may be added or deleted over time. The QAPP page is mostly frozen since it exists for administrative purposes; however its internal links to HowTo pages may be updated.
The HTML rendering for web delivery is experimental and may change, particularly in appearance. The content of individual pages will change often since the HowTos are our record of current and sometimes past methods, documentation to go along with data.
3. Formal reviewing and other feedback
Since this is dynamic content, particularly the HowTo pages which may change daily during new learning, it is complex to conduct any formal or official reviews because a reviewed page may have changed between review and the current date.
We ask that any formal or informal feedback, or questions, be emailed to sp17 @ cornell.edu, citing the page title, section number (in header) within page, and date of the last change log entry for the page. A screen capture embedded in the email is one way to convey details.
We have limited time to respond to anyone who is not formally involved in the project. Highest priority is for certain confidential cooperators, lake sampling volunteers, and sponsor NYSDEC. Since we are in the higher education industry, we are also biased toward service to Cornell students and other learners.