FLORIDA GEOGRAPHIC DATA LIBRARY DOCUMENTATION
VERSION 2004

TITLE: NAWQA TRACE ELEMENTS SAMPLING SITES AND DATA

Geodataset Name:      NAWQA
Geodataset Type:      SHAPE
Geodataset Feature:   POINT

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

This dataset contains the sampling sites and data for the U.S. Geological 
Survey National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program Study-Unit 
investigations of Trace Elements for the conterminous United States, 
excluding the High Plains Regional Ground-Water Study.
DATA SOURCE(S):                   U.S. Geological Survey
SCALE OF ORIGINAL SOURCE MAPS:    1:2,000,000
DATE OF AUTOMATION OR SOURCE:     2002
GEODATASET EXTENT:                State of Florida

FEATURE ATTRIBUTE TABLES:
Datafile Name: NAWQA.DBF
ITEM NAME            WIDTH    TYPE      PRECISION
  
SHAPE                  6     POINT          0                                        
TRACE_ELEM             8     DECIMAL        0                        
TRACE_EL_1             8     DECIMAL        0                        
SUID                  10     CHARACTER      -                        
STAID                 30     CHARACTER      -                        
LAT                    8     DECIMAL        3                        
LON                    8     DECIMAL        3                        
DATET                  8     DATE           -                        
TIMET                  8     DECIMAL        5                        
ALPCT                  8     DECIMAL        5                        
FEPCT                  8     DECIMAL        5                        
TIPCT                  8     DECIMAL        5                        
ORGPCT                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
ASCONC                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
CDCONC                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
CRCONC                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
CUCONC                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
PBCONC                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
HGCONC                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
NICONC                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
SECONC                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
ZNCONC                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
NOT_CODED              8     DECIMAL        5                        
NEWRS_URB              8     DECIMAL        5                        
RESID_URB              8     DECIMAL        5                        
COMME_URB              8     DECIMAL        5                        
INDUS_URB              8     DECIMAL        5                        
TRANS_URB              8     DECIMAL        5                        
INDCM_URB              8     DECIMAL        5                        
MIXED_URB              8     DECIMAL        5                        
OTHER_URB              8     DECIMAL        5                        
CROP_PAST              8     DECIMAL        5                        
ORCH_VINE              8     DECIMAL        5                        
CONF_FEED              8     DECIMAL        5                        
OTHER_AGR              8     DECIMAL        5                        
HERB_RNGE              8     DECIMAL        5                        
SHRB_RNGE              8     DECIMAL        5                        
MIXD_RNGE              8     DECIMAL        5                        
DECID_FOR              8     DECIMAL        5                        
EVERG_FOR              8     DECIMAL        5                        
MIXED_FOR              8     DECIMAL        5                        
STR_CANAL              8     DECIMAL        5                        
LAKES                  8     DECIMAL        5                        
RESERV                 8     DECIMAL        5                        
FOR_WTLD               8     DECIMAL        5                        
NFOR_WTLD              8     DECIMAL        5                        
BEACHES                8     DECIMAL        5                        
SANDY_AR               8     DECIMAL        5                        
EXP_ROCK               8     DECIMAL        5                        
STP_MINE               8     DECIMAL        5                        
TRANS_AR               8     DECIMAL        5                        
MIXED_BAR              8     DECIMAL        5                        
BARE_GRND              8     DECIMAL        5                        
PHYS_DIV              50     CHARACTER      -                        
PHYS_PROV             50     CHARACTER      -                        
PHYS_SEC              50     CHARACTER      -                        
PHYS_PCT               8     DECIMAL        5                        
POP90                  8     DECIMAL        5                        
BASN_SQMI              8     DECIMAL        5                        
BASN_SQKM              8     DECIMAL        5                        
PDENS_SQMI             8     DECIMAL        5                        
PDENS_SQKM             8     DECIMAL        5                        
ROCKDESC              50     CHARACTER      -                        
ROCKTYPE              50     CHARACTER      -                        
GEOL_TIME             50     CHARACTER      -                        
GEO_PCT                8     DECIMAL        5                        
COMMENT               50     CHARACTER      -                        
DESCRIPT              55     CHARACTER      -                        

FEATURE ATTRIBUTE TABLES CODES AND VALUES:

ITEM NAME       ITEM DESCRIPTION
  
SHAPE           Data attribute inherent to the ESRI shapefile format,
                which defines the data as a point, polyline, or polygon.

TRACE_ELEM      Internal feature number                                
TRACE_EL_1      User-assigned feature number                               
SUID            USGS station identification number                            
STAID           USGS station identification number                             
LAT             Latitude coordinate, in decimal degrees                              
LON             Longitude coordinate, in decimal degrees                               
DATET           Date of sample collection, in year.month.day                               
TIMET           Time of sample collection , in military time                              
ALPCT           Percent of aluminum in sample                              
FEPCT           Percent of iron in sample                               
TIPCT           Percent of titanium in sample                               
ORGPCT          Percent of organic carbon in sample                               
ASCONC          Concentration of arsenic in sample, in
                micrograms per gram (parts-per-million) ;
                "<" means "less than indicated value".                              
CDCONC          Concentration of cadium in sample, in micrograms 
                per gram (parts-per-million) ;
                "<" means "less than indicated value".                              
CRCONC          Concentration of chromium in sample, in 
                micrograms per gram (parts-per-million) ;
                "<" means "less than indicated value".
                                                      
CUCONC          Concentration of copper in sample, in micrograms
                per gram (parts-per-million) ;
                "<" means "less than indicated value".
                                                         
PBCONC          Concentration of lead in sample, in micrograms 
                per gram (parts-per-million) ;
                "<" means "less than indicated value".
                                                         
HGCONC          Concentration of mercury in sample, in
                micrograms per gram (parts-per-million) ;
                "<" means "less than indicated value".
                                                         
NICONC          Concentration of nickel in sample, in
                micrograms per gram (parts-per-million) ;
                "<" means "less than indicated value".
                                                        
SECONC          Concentration of selenium in sample, in 
                micrograms per gram (parts-per-million) ;
                "<" means "less than indicated value".
                                                         
ZNCONC          Concentration of zinc in sample, in 
                micrograms per gram (parts-per-million) ;
                "<" means "less than indicated value".
                                               
NOT_CODED       Percent of land use with missing code
                      
NEWRS_URB       Percent of NEW residential development                     
RESID_URB       Percent of urban land use, residential                     
COMME_URB       Percent of urban land use, commercial and
                services
                                              
INDUS_URB       Percent of urban land use, industrial                    
TRANS_URB       Percent of urban land use, transportation,
                communications and services                    
INDCM_URB       Percent of urban land use, industrial and
                commercial complexes
                                     
MIXED_URB       Percent of urban land use, mixed
                    
OTHER_URB       Percent of urban land use, other                      
CROP_PAST       Percent of cropland and pasture
ORCH_VINE       Percent of orchards, groves, vineyards,
                nurseries and ornamental horticultural areas      
                                    
CONF_FEED       Percent of confined feeding operations                       
OTHER_AGR       Percent of other agricultural land                      
HERB_RNGE       Percent of herbaceous rangeland                     
SHRB_RNGE       Percent of shrub-brushland rangeland                       
MIXD_RNGE       Percent of mixed rangeland                       
DECID_FOR       Percent of deciduous forest land                       
EVERG_FOR       Percent of evergreen forest land                      
MIXED_FOR       Percent of mixed forest land                      
STR_CANAL       Percent of streams and canals                     
LAKES           Percent of lakes                      
RESERV          Percent of reservoirs                      
FOR_WTLD        Percent of forested wetland                       
NFOR_WTLD       Percent of nonforested wetland                       
BEACHES         Percent of beaches                       
SANDY_AR        Percent of sandy areas other than beaches                    
EXP_ROCK        Percent of bare exposed rock                      
STP_MINE        Percent of strip mines, quarries, and gravel
                pits 
                                            
TRANS_AR        Percent of transitional areas                     
MIXED_BAR       Percent of mixed barren land
BARE_GRND       Percent of bare ground                          
PHYS_DIV        UNKNOWN        
                                               
PHYS_PROV       Name of major physioigraphic division in
                basin                    
PHYS_SEC        Name of major physioigraphic province in
                basin                   
PHYS_PCT        Name of major physioigraphic region in
                basin                      
POP90           Estimated 1990 population for basin                       
BASN_SQMI       Area of basin, in square miles (portion in US
                only)                       
BASN_SQKM       Area of basin, in square kilometers (portion
                in US only)                        
PDENS_SQMI      Estimated population density (people per
                square mile)                        
PDENS_SQKM      Estimated population density (people per
                square kilometer)
ROCKDESC        Brief description of the rock unit
ROCKTYPE        Type of rock                    
GEOL_TIME       Geological time period                      
GEO_PCT         Percent of most prominent geology found in
                basin                        
COMMENT         Comments                    
DESCRIPT        FGDL added item based on SUID 

USER NOTES:

The National Water-Quality Assessment Program is designed to describe the status
and trends in the quality of the Nation's ground- and surface-water resources
and to provide a sound understanding of the natural and human factors that
affect the quality of these resources (Leahy and others, 1990).  A "Study Unit"
is a major hydrologic system in which NAWQA studies are focused.  Study Units
are geographically defined by a combination of ground- and surface-water
features (Gilliom and others, 1995).

As part of the NAWQA program, Study-Unit investigations were planned for 60
areas throughout the Nation to provide a framework for national and regional
water-quality assessments (Leahy and others, 1990).  The 60 planned Study-Units
were divided into three groups of 20.  Each group would be intensively studied
on a rotational basis with 20 studies beginning in fiscal year 1991 (FY 1991
runs from October 1990-September 1991), 20 more studies beginning in fiscal year
1994 (October 1993-September 1994), and the final 20 studies beginning in fiscal
year 1997 (October 1996-September 1997).  Each study cycle would span 10 years.
In 1996, the number of Study-Units was scaled back to 59 when two of the
original 60 Study Units combined.  Also, because of budgetary restraints, some
of the original planned Study Units have been scheduled to start later than
originally planned and others have not even been scheduled to start yet.

This coverage contains basic geographic information about the 541 trace element
sites that were sampled as part of NAWQA within the conterminous United States,
excluding the High Plains Regional Ground Water-Study, which was conceived in
late 1997.  The coverage also includes the NAWQA standard abbreviation of each
Study Unit, the station identification code, and latitude and longitude
coordinates.

This data set is used primarily to display the location of NAWQA Trace Element
Study Sites and for use with the NAWQA Study Unit boundaries coverage (NAWQA)
for analysis of data at the national scale.  It is not recommended for either
local or regional analysis due to the small scale of most of the features.

Supplemental_Information:  Trace elements are inorganic chemicals usually
occurring in small amounts, whose concentrations in water, sediments, and biota
may be of concern.  Trace elements were cited as one of the highest-priority
issues for the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) program, in a
questionnaire of water managers and scientists across the United States.
Natural mineral deposits are generally the original source of these trace
elements, but their distribution and release may be greatly altered by a variety
of human actions.  NAWQA's goal is to understand how human and natural
influences affect the concentration and movement of two groups of trace
elements, including 31 metals and radionuclides.

Trace-element concentrations in 541 streambed-sediment samples collected from 20
study areas across the conterminous United States were examined as part of the
National Water-Quality Assessment Program of the U.S.  Geological Survey.
Sediment samples were sieved and the <63-īm fraction was retained for
determination of total concentrations of trace elements.  Aluminum, iron,
titanium, and organic carbon were weakly or not at all correlated with the nine
trace elements examined:  arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury,
nickel, selenium, and zinc.  Four different methods of accounting for
background/baseline concentrations were examined; however, normalization was not
required because field sieving removed most of the background differences
between samples.  The sum of concentrations of trace elements characteristic of
urban settings--copper, mercury, lead, and zinc--was well correlated with
population density, nationwide.  Median concentrations of seven trace elements
(all nine examined except arsenic and selenium) were enriched in samples
collected from urban settings relative to agricultural or forested settings.
Forty-nine percent of the sites sampled in urban settings had concentrations of
one or more trace elements that exceeded levels at which adverse biological
effects could occur in aquatic biota.

A note concerning data scale:

Scale is an important factor in data usage. Certain scale datasets are not
suitable for some project, analysis, or modelling purposes. Please be sure
you are using the best available data.

1:24000 scale datasets are recommended for projects that are at the county
level. 1:24000 data should NOT be used for high accuracy base mapping such
as property parcel boundaries.

1:100000 scale datasets are recommended for projects that are at the
multi-county or regional level.

1:250000 scale datasets are recommended for projects that are at the
regional or state level or larger.

Vector datasets with no defined scale or accuracy should be considered
suspect. Make sure you are familiar with your data before using it for
projects or analyses. Every effort has been made to supply the user with
data documentation. For additional information, see the References section
and the Data Source Contact section of this documentation. For more
information regarding scale and accuracy, see our web pages at:

http://www.geoplan.ufl.edu/education.html

FGDL QUALITY ASSURANCE STATUS:

-Projected data to FGDL Albers HPGN (See "Map Projection Parameters" below).
-Clipped to the State of Florida
-DESCRIPT item added based on SUID (used values for SUID based on metadata)
-Upcased all character records
-Linked NAWQA_TE.dbf to NAWQA.shp based on STFAID
-Deleted the following items that are non-applicable for Florida region.
(All records contained zero values). 
	DRY_SALT        Percent of dry salt flats                      
	SHB_TUND        Percent of shrub and brush tundra   
	HERB_TUND       Percent of herbaceous tundra   
	WET_TUND        Percent of wet tundra                     
	MIXD_TUND       Percent of mixed tundra                      
	SNOWFLDS        Percent of perennial snowfields                      
	GLACIERS        Percent of glaciers                   

REFERENCES:

U.S. Geological Survey
National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Study
http://co.water.usgs.gov/trace/ 

DATA LINEAGE SUMMARY:

Data originally released by USGS in 2002. Data was downloaded by the GeoPlan 
Center as an interchange file (.e00) from:
http://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/cmap/data/category3.html
When received, data was in the following projection: Albers, 
Datum: NAD 83, Spheroid: GRS80, Units: Meters.  The coverage was converted to shapefile
and then clipped to the State of Florida, and projected to FGDL Albers HPGN. 

MAP PROJECTION PARAMETERS:

Projection                           ALBERS
Units                                METERS
Datum                                HPGN
Spheroid                             GRS1980
1st standard parallel                24   0  0.000
2nd standard parallel                31  30  0.000
Central meridian                    -84   0  0.000
Latitude of projection's origin      24   0  0.000 
False easting (meters)               400000.00000
Calse northing (meters)              0.00000

DATA SOURCES CONTACT(S):

Name: 			U.S. Geological Survey  
Abbr.name: 		USGS
Address: 		12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, MS-413 
                        Reston, VA 20192 					
Contact Person: 	Kerie J. Hitt 
         Phone: 	703-648-6854 
         Email:         kjhitt@usgs.gov         

FGDL CONTACT:

Name:                    Florida Geographic Data Library
Abbr. Name:              FGDL
Address:                 Florida Geographic Data Library
                         431 Architecture
                         PO Box 115706
                         Gainesville, FL  32611-5706
Web site:                http://www.fgdl.org
Contact FGDL:
      Technical Support:                http://www.fgdl.org/fgdlfeed.html
      FGDL Frequently Asked Questions:  http://www.fgdl.org/fgdlfaq.html
      FGDL Mailing Lists:               http://www.fgdl.org/fgdl-l.html
      For FGDL Software:                http://www.fgdl.org/software.html