Wadeable Streams Assessment (WSA) Background Materials

The Wadeable Streams Assessment: A Collaborative Survey of the Nation's Streams (PDF)  (WSA) is a first-ever statistically-valid study of the biological condition of small streams throughout the U.S. It establishes a national baseline we can use to compare to results from future studies. This information will help us evaluate the successes of our national efforts to protect and restore water quality.

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Fact Sheets

• The Wadeable Streams Assessment: A Collaborative Survey of the Nation's Streams (PDF)  (2 pp, 615K) (fact sheet)
• Process to Examine Comparability of Biological Methods (PDF)  (2 pp, 403K) (technical fact sheet)
• Probability-based Design for Selecting Sampling Sites (PDF)  (2 pp, 517K) (technical fact sheet)
• Measuring Physical Habitat in Streams (PDF)  (2 pp, 405K) (technical fact sheet)
• Developing a Data Analysis Plan for the Wadeable Streams Assessment  (2 pp, 1MB) (technical fact sheet)

Field Methods

• Full Document (PDF)  (191 pp, 14.4MB)
  
  
• Cover, Table of Contents, Foreword (PDF)  (14 pp, 299K)
• 1.0 Introduction (PDF)  (6 pp, 233K)
• 2.0 Overview of Field Operations (PDF)  (12 pp, 175K)
• 3.0 Base Location Activities (PDF)  (16 pp, 323K)
• 4.0 Initial Site Procedures (PDF)  (14 pp, 459K)
• 5.0 Water Chemistry (PDF)  (8 pp, 297K)
• 6.0 Stream Discharge (PDF)  (10 pp, 1.4MB)
• 7.0 Physical Habitat Characterization (PDF)  (46 pp, 7.2MB)
• 8.0 Benthic Macroinvertebrates (PDF)  (12 pp, 2.4MB)
• 9.0 Rapid Habitat and Visual Stream Assessments  (18 pp, 1.2MB)
• 10.0 Final Activities (PDF)  (1 pg, 35K)
• 11.0 Citations (PDF)  (5 pp, 53K)
• Appendices (PDF)  (29 pp, 1.1MB)

Quality Assurance

• Wadeable Streams Assessment - Quality Assurance Project Plan (PDF)  (85 pp, 742K)

Site Evaluation

• Site Evaluation Guide (PDF)  (15 pp, 225K)

Laboratory Methods

• Water Chemistry Laboratory Manual (PDF)  (47 pp, 1.1MB)
• Benthic Laboratory Manual (PDF)  (31 pp, 128K)

Other Background Material

• Fact Sheet: State Monitoring, Assessment, and Reporting Program Grants and Cooperative Agreements (PDF)  (2 pp, 53K) (November 2003)
• Level II Ecoregion maps
  • EMAP Ecoregions of North America website
  • Full size Level II Ecoregion map (PDF) (1 pg, 888K)
• For more information on designing a probability-based study, visit: https://www.epa.gov/nheerl/arm/