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Data Dictionary


  
  

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Field Name Description Size Type Requirements Examples and Guidance Active
Address Physical address of field location. Might not be the same as mailing address. 200 Alphanumeric. Free Text. Optional;

424 128th Street NW

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Advanced Search For a particular Parameter, Advanced Search allows you to further filter data by choosing a Result Value range, Sample Matrix, Units, and Result Basis.  Units are converted to the Unit you choose.  You can post the results back to the map (will show locations where Advanced Search had matches). 0 Not a Field (information or instruction) Informational; Ex. "In soil, all arsenic values greater than 20 ppm." Y
Advanced Search - Exclude Selected Result Data Qualifiers By clicking on specific data qualifiers (like "U"), you can eliminate certain censored values from your dataset if you do not want them.  To select more than one type of data qualifier to eliminate, hold down the "Ctrl" key while you click. 0 Not a Field (information or instruction) Informational; Ex. "J" Y
Advanced Search - Result Value Range The range of values you want to look at in your advanced search.  You can also select just one value.  For example, you might want to see all Arsenic results in soil 20 mg/kg or over.  In that case, choose "Greater than or equal to" and type "20" into the first box. 0 Not a Field (information or instruction) Informational;

Valid Values:

  • Equals
  • Does not equal
  • Greater than
  • Greater than or equal to
  • Less than
  • Less than or equal to
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Advanced Search - Sample Matrix, Result Units, & Result Basis

Pick the Sample Matrix, Result Value Units, and Result Basis in which you want your results to be displayed.  EIM will convert Result Value Units to the type you pick for like Sample Matrices and Result Bases.  For example, if you choose a Sample Matrix of Water and Result Value Units of mg/l, and some results are in Water ug/l, the ug/l results will be converted to mg/l.  If some results have a Sample Matrix of Solid/Sediment, then they will not be included in your water dataset. 

 0 Not a Field (information or instruction) Informational;

Ex. "Tissue, PPM, WET"

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Aquifer Test Report in EIM Aquifer or pumping test report is available for this well. Download from EIM Search, Well Location Data Summary page (Logs and Other Documents). Does not include short-term bailer or air-lift tests performed by the driller during well construction or development. 1 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. System-generated;

For internal staff, see related help document http://ecyeim/EIMHelp/HelpDocuments/OpenDocument/66

See example here: https://fortress.wa.gov/ecy/eimreporting/Detail/Detail.aspx?DetailType=Location&SystemStationId=42943547

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Batch Number Sequential number assigned to a file or 'batch' of data uploaded by a user or LIMS to the EIM holding area.  When a file is uploaded, a batch number is assigned in running sequence, beginning with 1.  Each user has their own sequence. 5 Numeric. System-generated; 23, 24, 25, etc. Y
Bioassay Basis Basis on which the bioassay value was reported - either as the sample was received by the lab (wet weight) or adjusted to remove moisture (dry weight).  Sediment bioassays are normally reported in dry weight. 5 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED IF;information was reported by the lab.

Valid Values

  • Dry - analyte concentration in dry weight
  • Wet - analyte concentration in wet weight
  • AFD - Bioassay result in ash-free (organic free) dry weight
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Bioassay Category The category of the Bioassay sample. Bioassay test organisms are added to each category of sample. 10 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED;

Valid Values:

Initial - Initial Values - Measurements taken prior to the start of a test.  The Bioassay Category = Initial must be used together with Bioassay Endpoint = INIT.  The two most common initial measurements for sediment bioassays are initial dry weight or/and ash free dry weight for BIOM and GROW endpoint or stocking density of the test organisms for ABMO endpoint.

Negative - Negative Control Sample - A clean (non-contaminated) sample collected from a known, pristine location outside the study area, with a matrix similar to the native matrix of the test organism.  Provides (controls for) normal/natural effects data (e.g. mortality, growth) for the bioassay organism tested.

Only certain fields are required for negative controls.  Fill out only the YELLOW color-coded fields in your template - and conditional fields if pertinent.

Positive - Positive Control Sample - Laboratory sample containing a known series of concentrations (100%, 50%, 25%...) of a contaminant such as Cadmium Chloride (CdCl2).  Provides information on how sensitive a bioassay organism is to a known contaminant relative to previous populations of that test species.  Generally used to reflect the fitness of the bioassay organism test population.

Only certain fields are required for positive controls.  Fill out only the YELLOW color-coded fields in your template - -and conditional fields if pertinent.

Reference - Reference Sample - A clean (non-contaminated) field sample collected from a location with a matrix similar to the Test Sample.  Provides non-contaminant-related effects data (e.g. mortality, growth) due to intrinsic matrix conditions which are not native to the selected bioassay organism.  In sediments this would include grain size, ammonia, sulfides, TOC (= 5%), bacterial and fungal loading, and ionic clay-binding, etc.

Fill out the YELLOW and ORANGE color-coded fields in your template.

Test - Test Sample - Field sample from the environment in question.  Bioassay organisms are exposed to various dilutions of this sample to measure observable adverse impacts.

Fill out the YELLOW and ORANGE color-coded fields in your template.

 

Note: If Bioassay Category is Reference or Test, corresponding chemistry data in the Result Spreadsheet, Sample Use column, must also use valid values of Reference or Test, respectively.

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Bioassay Data Acceptability Rating of the Bioassay data quality. 3 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED; "G"  (Good, acceptable data) Y
Bioassay Data Qualifier Standard annotations indicating deviations from the Bioassay protocol. 3 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED IF;test deviated from protocol (when Bioassay Data Acceptability = U or D).

Valid Values:

  • AM - Ammonia present at concentrations above method recommendations
  • D - Duplicate record, explain reasoning in comments
  • NO - Native organisms present in sample during test
  • P - Positive control outside control limits
  • R - Reference sediment does not meet performance standard
  • SQ - Soil Quality Issues (pH, temperature, or moisture content)
  • SU - Sulfides present at concentrations above method recommendations.
  • WQ - Water Quality Issues (pH, temperature, salinity, or dissolved oxygen)
  • WPS - WQ, P, and SU combination - Water Quality Issues (pH, temperature, salinity, or dissolved oxygen), Positive control outside control limits, and Sulfides present at concentrations above method recommendations.
  • WQN - WQ and NO combination - Water Quality Issues (pH, temperature, salinity, or dissolved oxygen) and Native organisms present in sample during test.
  • WQP - WQ and P combination - Water Quality Issues (pH, temperature, salinity, or dissolved oxygen) and Positive control outside control limits.
  • WQS - WQ and SU combination - Water Quality Issues (pH, temperature, salinity, or dissolved oxygen) and sulfides present at concentrations above method recommendations. 
  • WSA - WQ, SU, and AM combination - Water Quality Issues (pH, temperature, salinity, or dissolved oxygen), Sulfides present at concentrations above method recommendations, and Ammonia present at concentrations above method recommendations
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Bioassay Dilution Percent The percent that the Bioassay sample is diluted. 3 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED IF;information was reported by lab

Valid Values: 0-100

Negative Contol samples use "0."

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Bioassay End Date The end date of the Bioasay test. 10 Date. Format: MM/DD/YYYY. REQUIRED;

07/09/2010

 

A date of 1/1/1900 means the Bioassay End Date was not specified or is not known.

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Bioassay End Time The end time of the Bioassay test. Expressed in military (24-hour) time. 8 Time. Format: HH:MM:SS (24-hour). Required if available;

14:39:00

 

A time of 00:00:00 indicates that the Bioassay End Time was not specified or is not known.

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Bioassay Endpoint Attribute looked for at the end of the Bioassay. 4 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED;

Valid Values:

  • MO - Normal survivorship
  • ABNM - Abnormality
  • BABM - Bioaccumulation – Biomass, total weight of all whole organisms
  • BAMT - Bioaccumulation – Mortality
  • BIOM - Biomass, total weight of all individuals
  • EMRG - Emergence
  • FERT - Fertilization, successful
  • GROW - Growth, weight of individual organism
  • INIT - Initial Value, use only with Bioassay Category of “Initial”
  • LUM - Luminosity
  • MORT - Mortality
  • RBRL - Reburial
  • REPR - Reproduction, count of young
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Bioassay Final Value The end value for a Bioassay, such as the number of individuals present. 10 Numeric. REQUIRED; 53.5, 1.75, 84, 6, 98 Y
Bioassay Initial Value The beginning value for a Bioassay, such as the number of individuals present. 10 Numeric. REQUIRED; 1.1, 2.88, 100, 11, 209 Y
Bioassay Lab Name The name of the lab that conducted the Bioassay. 254 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED;

Ex. "TestAmerica, Seattle-Tacoma WA" or "North Creek Analytical, Bothell WA (7/17/89-4/30/06)"

Some labs have new names due to buyouts or mergers.  Please use the name the lab under was when your samples were analyzed.

Search for EIM Method valid values (online)

Need a lab added to EIM?  Contact us online or ask your Data Coordinator

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Bioassay Lab Replicate ID

Additional ID for lab replicate samples with the same primary Sample ID.

Bioassay lab replicates are separate analyses of sub-samples created in the lab from a single field sample. They are used to assess error associated with sample heterogeneity, sample treatment, and analytical procedures - or variability of organism responses to toxicity tests.

 4 Alphanumeric. Free Text/Preferred Format. REQUIRED FOR;lab replicates with same Sample ID

1, 2, etc.

Marine bioassays normally have 5 replicates and freshwater bioassays have 8 replicates per sample, test and endpoint.

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Bioassay Method Procedure or method used to derive a result. 20 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED;

PSEP-BIO95 - Puget Sound Estuary Protocols, Laboratory Bioassays on Puget Sound Sediments, Rev. 1995

See EIM Methods Valid Values. Choose "Bioassay" for Search Category. If your method is not in the list, Contact EIM.

Use "UNKNOWN-BIOASSAY" for SEDQUAL and non-SEDQUAL legacy data where the method is not known.

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Bioassay Positive Control Comment Comments about the Bioassay positive control. 2000 Alphanumeric. Free Text. Optional;

LC50 = 6.67 ug/L of Cadmium

 

For tests and negative controls enter the appropriate LC50 or EC50 values.

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Bioassay QA Level Third-party expert data validation following 1989 PTI guidance. 3 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED IF;applicable

QA2

 

For bioassay data that were not validated at QA1 or QA2, leave this field blank and specify the QA Assessment Level (1-5) at the Study Level in EIM.

 

QA1: For sediment bioassay investigations conducted under SMS (Sediment Management Standards) and sediment dredging projects;
QA2: More rigorous bioasay QA for sediment investigations used to develop sediment AET values and SMS numerical chemical criteria.

MORE INFO:

QA1: Level of quality assurance review acceptable for most sediment bioassay investigations conducted under the Washington State Sediment Management Standards (SMS), as well as for sediment sampling and analyses conducted to determine the suitability of dredged material for unconfined, open-water disposal at a Washington State Dredged Material Management Program (DMMP) site.  A QA1 review of bioassay data covers field collection and handling, completeness, data presentation and reporting elements, and evaluates the acceptability of test results for positive controls, negative controls, reference sediment, replicates, and experimental conditions (temperature, salinity, pH, dissolved oxygen).  Detailed guidance on QA1 review procedures is provided in PTI (1989a) and is available from Ecology.

QA2: More vigorous level of quality assurance review appropriate for sediment bioassay data that are to be used for the development of AET values. Also recommended in cases where the data may be used in litigation.  This level of review ensures that the observed bioassay responses are not confounded by extraneous factors such as improper sample collection and processing, variable organism sensitivity, suboptimal experimental conditions, and erroneous endpoint determinations. QA2 review procedures are described in PTI (1989b), also available from Ecology.

REFERENCES

PTI, 1989a.  Puget Sound Dredged Disposal Analysis guidance manual:  data quality evaluation for proposed dredged material disposal projects.  Prepared for the Washington Department of Ecology, Olympia, WA.  PTI Environmental Services, Bellevue, WA.

PTI.  1989b.  Data validation guidance manual for selected sediment variables.  Prepared for the Washington Department of Ecology, Olympia, WA.  PTI Environmental Services, Bellevue, WA.

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Bioassay Start Date The start date of the Bioasay test. 10 Date. Format: MM/DD/YYYY. REQUIRED; 2/27/2009 Y
Bioassay Start Time The start time of the Bioassay test. 8 Time. Format: HH:MM:SS (24-hour). REQUIRED IF available; 16:32:29 Y
Bioassay Taxon Name Scientific or common name of the Bioassay organism. 254 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED;

Ex. "Daphnia pulex," "Hyalella Azteca"

Search for EIM Taxa valid values (online)

Need a critter added to EIM?  Contact us online or ask your Data Coordinator

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Bioassay Taxon TSN Integrated Taxon Identification System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN) of the Bioassay organism. 15 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED IF available;

Ex. 83874, 94026

Search for EIM Taxa valid values (online)

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Bioassay Treatment Additional treatment performed on the Bioassay sample. 2 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED IF;reported by the lab. P Y
Bioassay Type The type of Bioassay test. Normally defined by the taxonomic name of the Bioassay organism concatenated with the test duration. 7 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED; AMP10 Y
Bioassay Value Comment Comments about the Bioassay values. 2000 Alphanumeric. Free Text. Optional;

Cadmium chloride; CdCl2*2.5H2O; 60ug/L; Cadmium

 

For Tests and Negative Controls, LC50 or EC 50 values are entered here.

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Bioassay Value Units Unit of measure associated with the Bioassay Initial and Final Values. 3 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED; ND Y
Calculated Latitude Decimal Degrees (NAD83HARN) Calculated (normalized) latitude in decimal degrees using North American Datum of 1983 High Accuracy Reference Network (NAD83HARN). The original input coordinates are also stored in EIM. 9 Numeric. Valid Values. System-generated; Range for WA: 45.000000-49.999999 Y
Calculated Longitude Decimal Degrees (NAD83HARN) Calculated (normalized) longitude in decimal degrees using North American Datum of 1983 High Accuracy Reference Network (NAD83HARN). The original input coordinates are also stored in EIM. 10 Numeric. Valid Values. System-generated; Range for WA: 116.000000 – 125.999999 Y
Calculated NAVD88 Elevation Elevation normalized to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD88) 7 Numeric. System-generated; 240 Y
Calculated NAVD88 Well Water Level Elevation in Feet EIM-calculated well water level elevation normalized to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD88). Reported in feet. 7 Numeric. System-generated; 50.721, -3.20 Y
CAS Number / Result Parameter CAS Number A unique number assigned by the Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) Division of the American Chemical Society to each distinct chemical substance recorded in the Chemical Registry System. 15 Alphanumeric. Format: XXXXXX-XX-X to XX-XX-X. Vali REQUIRED IF;Result Parameter Name is a chemical substance with a CAS Number

Ex. "30002-00-9,"  “5905-01-1,”  “98-83-9,” Must include dashes.

Don't include non-CAS identifiers like "Temp," etc.

If you lab did not supply a CAS number with your results, contact your EIM Data Coordinator.

Search for EIM Parameter CAS Numbers online.

Download EIM Result help document for info on CAS Numbers that reformat into dates.

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City City (or closest city) or area where field location exists. 40 Alphanumeric. Free Text. Optional; Bellingham, Ephrata, Hatton, Kennewick, Moses Lake, Mt. Rainier National Park, Oroville, Sedro Woolley, Umatilla National Forest, etc. Y
Collection Entity

Identification of the oganization(s) that took part in collecting data at a given location.

Searching by Collection Entity will return Watershed Health Monitoring (WHM) sites where any portion of a Data Collection Event (DCE) was collected by the specified organization.

 50 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED;

Valid Values:

  • City of Redmond
  • Ecology
  • EPA
  • Herrera
  • King County
  • Palouse Conservation District
  • Pierce County
  • Puyallup Tribe
  • USFWS
  • USGS
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Coordinate System Type of coordinates used to enter geographic position of field location into EIM. 8 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED;

LAT/LONG - Latitude/Longitude in either

Degrees-Minutes-Seconds
  OR
Decimal Degrees

SPCS - Washington State Plane Coordinate System;

UTM - Universal Transverse Mercator.

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County County where field location exists. 20 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. Optional;

Douglas, Grays Harbor, Pierce, Spokane, Walla Walla, etc.

 

EIM auto-populates county of you don't provide it. Can include counties outside of Washington.

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County, Local, or Regional ID Alias for the EIM Location ID, such as a county ID. Entered into EIM as a Location Alias. 40 Alphanumeric. Free Text. Optional;

126THU (Thurston County Well ID)

 

Contact your EIM Data Coordinator if you want to add a County, Local, or Regional ID alias for your Location.

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Data Collection Event ID

Unique ID representing the collection of environmental data at a specific site.

 35 Alphanumeric. Free Text/Preferred Format. REQUIRED;

WAM06600-000222-DCE-2009-0812-10:10


Format = "ABC06600-****NN-DCE-YYYY-MMDD-HH:MM"

ABC = 3-letter identifier of site type

  • (WAM = sites from the WA Master Sample site list http://www.ecy.wa.gov/services/gis/data/environment/mastersample.htm;
  • ERR = sites that were meant to be WAM, but due to an error, field work was performed at the wrong site;
  • SEN = non-random statewide sentinel sites;
  • EPA = non-random Puget Sound sentinel sites;
  • BIO = non-random, statewide ambient biological monitoring sites).

****NN = the number portion of a 'SITE_ID' which comes from the WA Master Sample site list or a four character two digit abbreviation of the river/stream at a specific location.

DCE = Data Collection Event

YYYY = Year that the DCE occurred

MM = Month that the DCE occurred

DD = Day that the DCE occurred

HH:MM = Time when the DCE began (24 hour military time)

DCEs are intended to be completed within a single day.  Average duration of a DCE is 4-6 hours.

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Data First/Last Loaded Date

Dates data was first and last loaded to a Study. Some older studies don't have this information. You'll see "date not available" in these cases.

 10 Date. Format: MM/DD/YYYY. System-generated; 11/9/2016 - 11/15/2018 Y
Data Last Updated Date Date the data in this Study was last updated. 10 Date. Format: MM/DD/YYYY. System-generated; 08/21/2018 Y
Digestion Method Indicates the degree of digestion or breakdown performed on a solid sample prior to analysis. 20 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED FOR;metals in soil and sediment unless Fraction Analyzed is “Lab Leachate”

Valid Values:

  • Total - solid sample digested with acid to free up analyte prior to analysis; includes total recoverable
  • Complete - similar to Total, but completely dissolves solids. Often uses HF acid.
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Ecology Cleanup Site ID ID of the site where the field location exists, from Ecology's Integrated Site Information System (ISIS).  5 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED FOR;all cleanup site studies (except initial investigation or SHA).

Ex. "5771"

Search for Facility/Site ID and Cleanup Site ID for cleanup sites in Cleanup and Tank Search Database (online).

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Ecology Contact Name of the person at Ecology to contact about this study. Includes site manager, grant manager, project lead or other Ecology contact. 50 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED;

Ex. Smith, John


Pick a valid value from the drop-down list in the Study form.

Tip - Start by typing the last name of the person.

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Ecology Facility/Site ID ID of facility or site where the study or field location exists, from Ecology's Facility/Site database. 10 Numeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED FOR;WQ permit, landfill, and cleanup site studies (except II or SHA)

Ex. "1529149," "4085"

Search for Facility/Site ID in the Facility/Site Database (online).

Or search for Facility/Site ID for cleanup sites in Cleanup and Tank Search Database (online). 

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Ecology Funding Number

The number assigned by Ecology to a grant, loan, forgivable loan, or contract.  Tracked in EIM at the Study level.

Previously known as the Grant Number or Loan Number. In 2015, Ecology moved to a new numbering system.

 50 Alphanumeric. Free Text/Preferred Format. REQUIRED FOR;Studies funded by an Ecology grant, loan, or contract

Ex. “WQC-2015-MSRF-00104” (post-2015)

Ex. "G0200309" (pre-2015)

2015 onward:

Number generated by Ecology Administration of Grants & Loans (EAGL) database

Pre-2015:

G + 7 numbers (grant)

L + 7 numbers (loan)

C + 7 numbers (contract)

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Ecology Monitoring Program Department of Ecology monitoring programs where data is collected for a specific monitoring objective - usually long-term and regularly-scheduled, using a consistent protocol. An EIM Study can belong to only one monitoring program. Monitoring programs are only for Ecology-led studies. If you are an Ecology employee and you need to add your study to an Ecology monitoring program, please contact your data coordinator to have it added.
 		20 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED IF;Study is part of an Ecology Monitoring Program

Valid Values:

  • BEACH Program
  • Freshwater Fish Contaminants
  • Freshwater Information Network (FIN)
  • Groundwater
  • Marine Sediments
  • Marine Water Column Monitoring
  • Persistent, Bioaccumulative Toxics (PBTs)
  • River and Stream Flow
  • Watershed Health Monitoring (WHM)
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Ecology Program or other Responsible Entity Name of the Ecology program and region OR external entity under which a Study was conducted. 30 Alphanumeric. Valid Values. REQUIRED;

Ex. "Ecy Toxics Cleanup Program, Southwest Region" or "Ecy Water Quality Program, multi-region or statewide"


Pick a valid value from the drop-down list in the Study form.

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