The purpose of the QA document is to identify the type, quantity, and quality of data necessary to provide defensible, measurable results, and to verify project success. In recent years, DES has worked to develop generic or programmatic QAPPs for common types of projects funded under the Section 319 Watershed Assistance Grants Program, e.g., watershed surveying, watershed planning, pollutant load reduction modeling, etc. Projects conducting these activities, and others covered under generic or programmatic QAPPs, are able to complete an abbreviated QA document called a site specific project plan, specific to each activity.
The amount of time it takes to develop, write, and have a QAPP approved by DES and EPA is typically between – four and 12 months. Full QAPPs usually take longer than SSPPs. A typical QAPP development schedule is shown in the QAPP Process Time Table 
. The time frame largely depends on the initiative of the grant recipient to write and revise the QAPP. Once EPA has approved the QAPP, data collection work may begin. Organizations planning to conduct data collection (for example, water quality monitoring) as part of their project should plan for up to one year of lag time between proposal submittal and the start of monitoring.
- EPA Guidance Documents
- Site Specific Project Plan Templates under Generic/Programmatic QAPPs
- Individual Project QAPP Templates
- Example Site Specific Project Plans (SSPPs)
- Example Individual Project QAPPs
All documents have been saved in Adobe Acrobat Reader format unless otherwise indicated.
EPA Guidance Documents
There are two primary EPA guidance documents for preparing QAPPs, one for volunteer monitors and one for professional organizations. Depending on your association, you should use one of the following documents to prepare your QAPP.
- The Volunteer Monitor's Guide to QAPPs, EPA 841-B-96-003, Sept. 1996.
- EPA Requirements for Quality Assurance Project Plans (EPA QA/R-5), EPA/240/B-01/003, March 2001.
- Biological monitoring may need supplemental guidance documents, and will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
DES Quality Assurance Document Templates
DES has several templates available to grant recipients to assist in the preparation of QAPPs and SSPPs under generic/programmatic QAPPs. All QA documents received by the Watershed Assistance Section should be submitted electronically in Microsoft Word format, via e-mail or CD, using one the following templates:
- Site Specific Project Plan (SSPP) Templates under Generic/Programmatic QAPPs
The following QAPPs are generic QAPPs that act as an umbrella for individual projects being conducted in accordance with standards and procedures documented in the generic QAPPs. These projects must complete individual project Sampling and Analysis Plans (SAPs) or Site Specific Project Plans (SSPPs) to be approved by DES.- New Hampshire Section 319 Nonpoint Source Grant Program
NHDES, April 2010
Attachment A – Watershed Surveying SSPP Template
Attachment B – Pollutant Loading Analysis for BMP Implementation & Watershed Management Planning Projects SSPP Template
Attachment C – 2010 319 RFP & Proposal Form
Attachment D – NH 319 Administrative Guidelines
Attachment E – Organizational Chart
Attachment F – Guidance for Developing Watershed Management Plans - Microbial Source Tracking Generic QAPP
NHDES, October 2004.
Microbial Source Tracking - SSPP Template - Stream Morphology Data Collection Generic QAPP
Provan & Lorber, Inc., July 2003
Appendix A: Stream Channel Reference Sites: An Illustrated Guide to Field Technique
Appendix B - Calibrating Bankfull Discharge at USGS Stream Gaging Stations
Appendix C - The Reference Reach: A Blueprint for Channel Design
Appendix D: Representative Pebble Count Procedures
Appendix E - Plan View Analysis
Appendix F - Cross-Section and Longitudinal Profile
Appendix G - Bar/Bulk Sampling Methods
Appendix H - Reference Reach Data Analysis Forms
Appendix I - Stream Classification Charts
Appendix J - Glossary
Stream Morphology Data Collection SSPP Template - Other
For projects using generic or programmatic QAPPs other than those mentioned in a, b, or c above, the Sampling and Analysis Plan (SAP) or Site Specific Project Plan (SSPP) formats should be approved by the assigned DES Project Manager.
- New Hampshire Section 319 Nonpoint Source Grant Program
- Individual Project QAPP Templates
The following instructions and template are for projects collecting environmental data (sampling/monitoring) that is not covered under a generic/programmatic QAPP above:
The Full QAPP Template Instructions
The Full QAPP Template
Example QA Documents
In addition to the templates above, DES has the following approved QA documents available as examples to assist in the development of your QAPP.
Example Site Specific Project Plans (SSPP)
Pollutant Loading Analysis for BMP Implementation & Watershed Management Planning SSPP
- Salmon Falls Headwater Lakes Watershed Management Plan: Implementation (Phase 1) and Road Management for Great East Lake, Lake Ivanhoe, Horn Pond, Wilson Lake, and Lovell Lake
Acton Wakefield Watershed Alliance and DES. February 2010. - Chocorua Village Bioretention Area
Fay, Spofford, and Thorndike. December 2009 - Lake Winnipesaukee Watershed Management Plan: Meredith, Paugus & Sanders Bays
Lake Region Planning Commission. May 2009 - Watershed-Based Plan for High Quality Waters in the AWWA Region
FB Environmental Associates. December 2008
Stream Morphology Data Collection SSPP
- Pemigewasset River Restoration Project – Woodstock, NH
Horizons Engineering. August 2009. - Nash Stream Restoration Project
Field Geology Services. December 2008. - Exeter River Geomorphic Assessment
Bear Creek Environmental, LLC and Fitzgerald Environmental Associates, LLC. July 2008. - Suncook River Avulsion, Epsom, NH Geomorphology-based Alternatives Evaluation
Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. August 2007.
Example Individual Project QAPPs
- Maxwell Pond Dam Removal/Black Brook Restoration
- Appendices [5 MB]
- Lamprey River Unified Stream Assessment
Lamprey River Watershed Association. January 2008. - Newfound Lake Watershed Assessment
University of New Hampshire Center for Freshwater Biology and UNH Cooperative Extension. June 2007.- Appendices: Standard Operating Procedures
- City of Keene Escherichia coli Impairment Investigation and Remediation, and Habitat Restoration Plan for Beaver Brook
City of Keene Public Works Department. June 2007. - Webster/Highland Lake Watershed Management Plan
Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. May 2006. - Beaver Lake Watershed Assessment
Gomez and Sullivan Engineers, P.C. April 2006. - Pennichuck Watershed Restoration Project
Comprehensive Environmental Inc. January 2006. - Ashuelot River Continuity Assessment [link to Main body of the QAPP]
The Nature Conservancy, NH Chapter. November 2005.- Appendix A: NH Dam Field Form
- Appendix B: Culvert Field Data Form
- Appendix C: Instructions for Field Data Form
- Appendix D: Photo Documentation Standard Operating Procedure
- Appendix E: Culvert Flow Chart
- Lake Horace Marsh Restoration Project
Piscataquog River Association. August 2005.- Appendix A: Site Map
- Appendix B1: Wildlife Sightings Form
- Appendix B2: Water Level Measurement Form
- Tributary Monitoring in the Winnipesaukee Watershed
Lake Winnipesaukee Association. December 2003.
Appendices available upon request. - Seabrook Stormwater Verification Project QAPP
UNH Jackson Estuarine Laboratory. July, 2003.
For more example QAPPs, go to the EPA Region 1 Web site.
More Information
For more information on QAPPs, contact Jillian McCarthy, DES Watershed Assistance Section, at (603) 271-8475 or jillian.mccarthy@des.nh.gov.
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