United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office Of Water(WH-550G)
EPA813-F-93-003
September 1993
SEPA The Minimum
Set Of Data
Elements For
Ground Water
Quality
Fact Sheet On
Implementation
For EPA And
EPA Contractors
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Why a Minimum Set of Data Elements for
Ground Water Quality?
As a part of the Environmental Protection
Agency's (EPA) continuing commitment to
protect the Nation's ground water resources,
the Agency has identified a critical need to '
improve the management of ground water
information.
To meet this need, EPA's Office of
Ground Water and Drinking Water, with the
help of numerous State and Federal officials,
has established a Minimum Set of Data
Elements for Ground Water Quality
(MSDE).
What is the MSDE?
The MSDE is "the minimum number of
elements necessary to use ground water
quality data . . . across related programs."
It is a set of 21 ground water quality-related
data elements that contain geographic, well
and sample descriptors.
These data elements form a standard data
set that EPA and States can use to improve
their ability to store and manipulate ground
water data in order to support better
environmental decision-making and promote
the integration of related environmental
programs. The MSDE will also allow EPA,
other Federal agencies and States to share
data across agencies, offices and programs to
accurately identify environmental risks
associated with ground water contamination
and to measure progress in efforts to protect
ground water.
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EPA is prescribing data formats in the
MSDE for a limited number of elements to
ensure conformance with EPA and Federal
government policies. For most of the
elements in the MSDE, however, EPA does
not prescribe but rather suggests data storage
conventions.
How does the MSDE affect EPA and EPA
contractors?
In October 1992 EPA issued a Policy
Order requiring EPA staff and contractors,
including those involved in research and
development and enforcement activities, to
use the MSDE in all ground water data
collection activities.
EPA Program Offices and Regions shall
incorporate this policy into their ground
water data collection activities through
appropriate mechanisms, including:
Regulations;
Policies;
Directives;
Orders;
Guidance or Procedures.
In such instances, incorporation of the
MSDE should be consistent with statutory
and other significant policy, such as
administrative and technical considerations.
This policy order does not preclude the
EPA and its contractors from imposing more
stringent accuracy requirements or from
employing alternative ground water data
collection schemes in future activities.
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In addition, EPA encourages all
organizations that collect ground water
quality data to adopt and use the MSDE.
Such organizations include State and local
governments, EPA grantees, other Federal
agencies, the regulated community,
associations and other members of the
ground water community.
How did the MSDC develop?
EPA began developing the MSDE as a
result of a Ground Water Data Requirements
Analysis conducted in 1987. An issue
consistently identified during this analysis
was the need to improve access to ground
water data and the need to standardize data
elements to increase information sharing
capabilities. In response to this need. EPA
conducted a workshop in 1988 to discuss the
development of a minimum set of data
elements for ground water quality.
EPA also developed an MSDE guidance
document that includes definitions,
discussions and examples of use for each
element in the MSDE. The development of
the MSDE guidance involved an iterative
process of drafting and peer review by a
work group of representatives from EPA,
other Federal agencies and States. The 21
elements that comprise the MSDE represent
the minimum data elements officials should
consider when collecting ground water
quality data. These elements form a core of
ground water data elements upon which data
managers can build data bases by adding
additional elements.
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The MSDE
The Minimum Set of Data Elements are
subdivided into four categories:
1. General Descriptor #1
2. Geographic Descriptors #2-10
3. Well Descriptors #11-15
4. Sample Descriptors #16-21
The Minimum Set of Data Elements
consists of the following elements:
1. Data Sources
2. Latitude
3. Longitude
4. Method Used to Determine Latitude
and Longitude
5. Description of Entity
6. Accuracy of Latitude and Longitude
Measurement
7. Altitude
8. Method Used to Determine Altitude
9. State FIPS Code
10. County FIPS Code
11. Well Identifier
12. Well Use
13. Type of Log
14. Depth of Well at Completion
15. Screened/Open Interval
16. Sample Identifier
17. Depth to Water
18. Constituent or Parameter Measured
19. Concentration/Value
20. Analytical Results Qualifier
21. Quality Assurance Indicator
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What are the benefits of incorporating the
MSDE into current activities?
There are a number of benefits to
adopting and using the MSDE. The MSDE
ensures consistency in the type and quality of
ground water data collected by all users of
this data set.
By using the same data elements, that
have the same definitions, members of the
ground water community can easily share
important ground water quality data. Such
sharing facilitates effective and efficient
information exchange within and between
Federal, State and local programs. Examples
of activities the MSDE will facilitate are:
. Regional Data Management. Operating
regional data management orders requires the
integration of data bases. Use of a common
minimum set of data elements eliminates
time consuming and costly efforts to make
data bases compatible.
. STORET and FRDS. In response to the
MSDE Order, EPA is incorporating the
MSDE into the modernization of the Federal
Reporting Data System (FRDS) and the
Office of Water's STOrage and RETrieval
System (STORET).
FRDS is an automated data base supporting
the Public Water Systems Supervision
Program operated by the EPA's Office of
Ground Water and Drinking Water. This
data base, which is being modernized, is a
repository for data on public water
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supplies and compliance monitoring
requirements and regulations of the Safe
Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1986.
STORET, one of the oldest and largest water
information systems, is undergoing a major
modernization. STORET forms the basis for
many other water information systems.
Designed to reside on EPA's mainframe
computer, the modernized STORET will
provide enhanced capabilities to describe the
more than 150 million parametric
observations currently residing within the
system.
Including the MSDE in FRDS and STORET
is expected to greatly increase the utilization
of ground water data between EPA programs
and Federal, State and local agencies.
. Geographic Information Systems.
Geographic information system (CIS)
applications often rely on data from several
different data bases. The strength of a CIS
lies in its ability to overlay numerous layers
of location-related information. Entering
data into a CIS is the most time-consuming
component of CIS work. Differing means of
locating sites and of describing the features
at those sites can make operating a CIS
difficult. Therefore, standardizing data,
through efforts such as the MSDE, can
simplify the use of a CIS.
. State Ground Water Programs.
Incorporating the MSDE will assist States in
achieving formal endorsements of their Core
Comprehensive State Ground Water
Protection Programs (CSGWPPs) from EPA.
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Implementation of the MSDE will also help
EPA and States to efficiently measure
progress in and document the success of
CSGWPPs.
Where Can I Get More Information
on the MSDE?
More information can be found in
the following documents:
EPA Policy Order No. 7500.1 A,
October 1992.
Definitions for The Minimum Set of
Data Elements for Ground Water
Quality, EPA 813/B-92-002, July 1992
(guidance document).
Minimum Set of Data Elements for
Ground Water Quality - Brochure
Copies of these documents may be
obtained by calling:
U.S. EPA
Safe Drinking Water Hotline
1-800-426-4791
or writing:
U.S. EPA
Office of Ground Water and Drinking
Water Resource Center
401 M Street, S.W., RC-4100
Washington, D.C. 20460
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