Tetra Tech BPM003500_Method_of_Approach_Attachment_3_A.pdf

Attachment 3-A Method Proposal (Method of Approach)

The Offeror shall provide a narrative response to each question that demonstrates their understanding of the Scope of Work requirements and describes your company’s overall method of approach for providing the service stated in this solicitation. If there is a question that is not applicable to the areas of expertise that you are proposing for you may mark it N/A. Responses shall be limited to one (1) page per question.

Do not include marketing materials.

Offeror Shall mark areas of expertise they are proposing to provide services for:

1) Stream Chemistry _X__

2) Lake Chemistry _X__

3) Biological and Habitat _X__

4) Streamflow Duration Method (SDAM) _X__

5) Groundwater Sampling _X__

6) Fish Tissue _X__

The Tetra Tech team is well positioned and resourced to deliver all of the required services to ADEQ under this contract. Our strong project managers have years of progressively responsible roles implementing and managing water quality and monitoring projects. They are high performing individuals who have demonstrated their ability to work cooperatively, take initiative where needed, be responsive to the needs of clients, and consistently deliver high quality work. Highlights of our practitioners’ experience include:

• Expertise in planning, organizing, preparing, and reviewing work plans and finalizing work products.

• Technical skills to assist in water quality and monitoring sampling

• Project management skills to establish project schedules, budgets, and scopes of work, helping to ensure adherence to ADEQ budgets and any government funding schedules.

• Responsiveness to the requesting ADEQ leadership and project manager requests.

• Availability to report to ADEQ offices as needed and the ability to maintain a flexible schedule to support project needs.

Note: Some questions only apply to certain types of samples while others apply to all. The sample type will be in parenthesis before the question.

Question 1: (All Sample Types)

- Describe how your company selects a Project Manager for a project.

Project Managers are assigned to projects based primarily on the technical needs of the project with some consideration of location. Matching correct personnel to manage projects and lead tasks is among the most important aspects of Tetra Tech’s Project Excellence Program (PEP). We select project managers that have a clear understanding of specific client needs and have demonstrated excellent performance for that client and/or similar clients with knowledge of the client’s industry, operations and facilities. We maintain experienced and trained Project Managers within the geographies where we operate, so we can assign local project managers to perform work in those regions. Our work in Arizona is primarily managed by Project Managers from our

Phoenix and Tucson Offices, with some specialized leadership from Flagstaff and other Intermountain or Southwest regional offices depending on the technical skills required for specific projects.

Within the PEP our Project Managers have access to many tools and personnel resources to assist with: pricing, project start-up, project coordination, performance measurement, project reviews, quality, and health and safety. We have developed a thorough Project Management Training Program to educate our Project Managers.

Experience has shown that excellence in project management delivers great benefits to our clients and to Tetra Tech. Our training program provides Tetra Tech Project Managers with the systems, guidance materials, support functions, and career paths that are among the best in the industry. Tetra Tech has always had as a tenet of our organization that we desire to be known as “world class” in the area of project management.

Question 2: (All Sample Types)

- Describe how your company ensures that a project is delivered on-time, on-budget, and completed correctly the first time.

Tetra Tech understands that appropriate planning, monitoring and status reporting are keys to successful project execution and completion. Tetra Tech’s project delivery approach focuses on understanding our client’s objectives, “do it right” principles, and providing client value through excellent service delivery and product quality. In addition to these fundamentals, we continue to refine our project management program through continual improvement project reviews.

Our project-specific quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) effort ensure that expectations for controlling costs, schedule, and quality of work are met, as summarized in the bullets below.

• Cost: Controlling project cost starts with good planning and management. Tetra Tech’s cost control and reporting system starts during project planning with work breakdown structures (WBS) for establishing task-based budgets. The WBS is used to accumulate and report costs internally and to the client through our Oracle-based accounting system. This earned value management approach is used to assess costs and technical completion to monitor budget compliance and identify and address unanticipated costs as soon as possible during the project. Additionally, our Project Managers use Microsoft (MS) Excel tools for budget tracking as needed for select projects.

• Schedule: Managing a project schedule efficiently starts with a detailed baseline schedule established during project planning. The schedule follows the WBS and reports the progress of tasks as planned. We use Primavera or MS Project for scheduling, depending upon a client’s preference and project complexity, to monitor and communicate the schedule status to our clients, contractors and other project stakeholders.

Deviations from the schedule are highlighted during monthly reporting; changes threatening its adherence are discussed with the client and corrective action is agreed upon, if necessary.

• Technical Services and Reports: QA/QC techniques start during the planning phase, including defining the performance standards with the client (i.e., specifications, guidance, SOPs, testing methods, etc.) and identifying specific QA techniques to be used (e.g., storyboards, interim deliverables, review sessions, and value engineering reviews). Before a technical deliverable is released, a QC review is conducted. It involves the following: (1) an editorial review to ensure clarity and readability; (2) a technical review to ensure recommendations are supported by facts; and (3) a final quality review to ensure all agreed upon performance standards were met and the QC reviews were completed appropriately. Our QA/QC review process is further described in our response to Question 3.

While Tetra Tech has the capacity for numerous detailed procedures, systems and methodologies to increase the probability for project success, we are also aware that there is no “one-size-fits-all” approach to project execution. Through communication and planning with our clients, we develop project-specific controls that may be adjusted to fit what is mutually best and agreed upon with our clients for budget, schedule and quality tracking as part of our successful project management program.

Question 3: (All Sample Types)

- Provide a description of a project that your company has successfully completed that is similar to the scope of work of this solicitation. The description shall include the contract dollar amount, period of performance, client, schedule variances, health and safety violations and whether the contract was performed within budget.

Stream Chemistry Sampling:

Senior Environmental Specialist Keith Pohs performed manual grab sampling for stream chemistry at a historic mine site along the Hassayampa River in the Bradshaw Mountains in 2018 and 2019 in response to a consent decree by ADEQ to address input of cadmium, copper, and zinc from the site. The waterbody was subject to a Total Maximum Daily Load. He is familiar with field metals sampling procedures including maintenance of chain-of-custody and sample preservation depending on the laboratory analytical techniques required. As part of this effort he also prepared a Sampling and Analysis Plan.

Contract Amount: $8,000 Period of Performance: 2018-2019 Client: Gold Paradise Peak, Inc.

Schedule Variances: None Health & Safety Violations: None This contract was performed and completed within budget.

Lake Chemistry Sampling:

Tetra Tech performed lake chemistry sampling at Rainbow Lake in Pinetop, AZ in support of the Highway 260 and Johnson WQARF project. Staff utilized a small boat to collect shallow and deep samples of lake water at various locations along the eastern edge of the lake, nearest the potential area of groundwater contamination. Tetra Tech utilized a Kemmerer-style sampling device to collect subsurface water samples at a specific depth, as well as a Secchi disk to determine sample depth and water clarity.

Contract Amount: $6,000 (approximate) of a $455,000 PO Period of Performance: 2016-2017 Client: ADEQ Schedule Variances: None Health & Safety Violations: None This contract was performed and completed within budget.

Biological and Habitat Sampling:

Tetra Tech performed riparian vegetation taxonomic identification at several riparian sites in a wide range of broader habitats as part of Clean Water Act jurisdictional determination work for permitting of ADEQ mine remediation work in 2020 and 2021. Sites in the Patagonia Mountains of southeastern Arizona and the Bradshaw Mountains of central Arizona varied in terms of elevation and species present. Tetra Tech biologists routinely conduct biological evaluations and habitat assessments for a variety of projects in Arizona and the Southwest. Senior Environmental Specialist Keith Pohs formerly served as biological science technician and landscape ecologist for the USGS Biological Science Center in Flagstaff and has considerable knowledge of the flora of Arizona.

Contract Amount: $50,000 (approximate) Period of Performance: 2020-2021 Client: ADEQ Schedule Variances: None Health & Safety Violations: None This contract was performed and completed within budget.

Streamflow Duration Assessment Method (SDAM) Tetra Tech conducted streamflow duration assessments at several sites in a wide range of broader habitats as part of Clean Water Act jurisdictional determination work for permitting of ADEQ mine remediation work in 2020 and 2021. Sites in the Patagonia Mountains of southeastern Arizona and the Bradshaw Mountains of central Arizona varied in terms of elevation and flow. Eleven Level 1 indicators of the Hydrology Protocol for the Determination of Uses Supported by Ephemeral, Intermittent, and Perennial Waters, published by the Surface Water Quality Bureau of the New Mexico Environment Department

(NMED 2011), were used to determine flow regime as follows: 1) Water in the Channel, 2) Filamentous Algae and Periphyton 3) Differences in Vegetation, 4) Riffle-Pool Sequences and 5) Absence of Rooted Upland Plants in Streambed, 6) Fish, 7) Benthic Macroinvertebrates, 8) Hydric Soils, 9) Sinuosity, 10) Sediment on Plants or Debris, and 11) Particle Size or Stream Substrate Sorting. Tetra Tech is familiar with the EPA’s Stream Duration Assessment Method (SDAM) including the method’s basis and decision process and its five primary indicators: hydrophytic plant species, aquatic invertebrates, EPT taxa, algae, and fish.

Contract Amount: $50,000 (approximate)

Period of Performance: 2020-2021 Client: ADEQ Schedule Variances: None Health & Safety Violations: None This contract was performed and completed within budget.

Groundwater Sampling:

Pinal Valley Well No. 11 Variable Rate and Constant Rate Testing and Sampling.

Depth-Specific sampling conducted during spinner logging.

Composite sample collection during variable rate testing and constant rate testing; both the depth-specific and composite samples were analyzed for pH, TDS, arsenic, nitrate, phosphate, calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, alkalinity, chloride, iron, silica, manganese, vanadium, zinc, fluorides, sulfates, temperature, perchlorate, hexavalent chromium, trivalent chromium, vanadium, strontium.

New Source Approval sample collected during the constant rate testing.

Contract Amount: $54,333 Period of Performance: 2020-2021 Client: Hunter Contracting Co.

Schedule Variances: None Health & Safety Violations: None This contract was performed and completed within budget.

Fish Tissue Sampling Tetra Tech conducted Fish Tissue Sampling as part of the San Juan River Fish Tissue Contaminant Study for the Navajo Nation EPA. In 2015, the plume from the Gold King Mine (GKM) wastewater release flowed through tribal lands, subjecting downstream waters to high metal concentrations. Concerns remained regarding possible resuspension and remobilization of metals in sediments, and latent exposures to aquatic life or humans. The Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency (NNEPA) recognizes the importance of recreation in the San Juan River basin, including fishing, and the potential exposure of humans to contaminants through fish consumption. It is because of that recreational importance and the possibility of latent human exposure to metal contamination that NNEPA contracted Tetra Tech to design and conduct the 2017 San Juan River Fish Tissue Contaminant Study. The goal of the study was to provide a screening level assessment of metals in fish fillet tissue to help identify the prevailing human health risk associated with fish consumption subsequent to the GKM toxic release. Tetra Tech prepared a Quality Assurance Project Plan and a sampling Plan for the study, and both were reviewed and approved by NNEPA and USEPA. Channel Catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) were selected as an indicator species based on their ecology, their sportfish status, and human consumption potential; and their relative abundance in the river. Tetra Tech and Navajo Nation Department of Fish and Wildlife collected catfish from two designated river reaches, one from Fruitland to Shiprock, NM and one from Aneth to Montezuma Creek, UT. A total of 10 composite fish samples (50 fish) were collected in April 2017. Tetra Tech’s Biological Research Facility prepared fillet homogenates for each of the samples and submitted them for analysis of a suite of 25 metals. Analytical results were compared to USEPA risk-based fish consumption limits to characterize relative human health risk and were detailed in Tetra Tech’s technical report submittal to NNEPA. The final report provided current information on metals in San Juan River fish fillet tissue as well as baseline data for any future studies of temporal trends.

Contract Amount: $88,300 Period of Performance: 2015-2017 Client: EPA Schedule Variances: None Health & Safety Violations: None This contract was performed and completed within budget.

Question 4: (All Sample Types)

- Provide a description of past performance regarding Quality Assurance/Quality Control.

a. How did past sampling and analysis projects meet specific Data Quality Objectives?

b. Did the data generated from performed sampling activities meet the project specific criteria such as precision, accuracy, representativeness and comparability?

c. For the given project, what was the percentage of usable data? What percentage of the data were rejected?

In Arizona, Tetra Tech performed a recent groundwater monitoring event in April 2021 as part of ongoing site characterization and remediation efforts at a former fueling station on behalf of ADEQ. Field activities were conducted in accordance with industry standard as well as ASTM D4448 Standard Guide for Sampling Groundwater Monitoring Wells. Groundwater duplicate samples at a rate of one per every ten primary samples to ensure laboratory accuracy. Two total duplicate samples were collected from 16 primary monitoring wells.

Additional sample volume was collected from a single monitoring well for analysis as a matrix spike/matrix spike duplicate (MS/MSD) for further laboratory QA/QC.

The data resulting from the April 2021 groundwater monitoring event were reviewed by the laboratory and issued to Tetra Tech with several qualifiers attached to individual sample data. Approximately 20% of analytical results were reported as an estimated concentration wherein the analyte concentration fell below the laboratory reporting limit but above the method detection limit. These results were considered to be valid and were reported as such. 12 out of 16 primary samples for Nitrate were received by the laboratory outside the proper holding period due to project delays. These samples were flagged by the laboratory but still analyzed at the request of Tetra Tech. As these samples’ data were only to be used to monitoring of natural attenuation conditions at the site, the results were reported to the ADEQ with appropriate notation.

Laboratory analysis of the MS/MSD resulted in a flag on only one analyte in one groundwater sample showing that analyte recovery within the spike sample was low, however the spike duplicate sample recovery was considered to be within permissible limits. The analytical results for this sample were considered valid and were reported accordingly.

In Washington, for Long Lake Dam, which is owned and operated by Avista Utilities, Tetra Tech collected water samples and field measurement profiles once per month during June through September in both 2010 and 2011 at six locations on Lake Spokane. From 2012 through 2017, Tetra Tech collected water samples, field measurements, phytoplankton, and zooplankton samples twice per month during June through September, and once per month during May and October at the same six monitoring locations. All samples were collected according to Ecology’s Quality Assurance Project Plan with approved revisions made by Avista and Tetra Tech in 2012. Tetra Tech completed annual monitoring summary reports and data analysis/evaluations. Following the 2016 monitoring season, Tetra Tech completed a detailed assessment of water quality conditions in Lake Spokane, including long-term climatic and water quality trends, as well as lake response to further reduced inflowing nutrient concentrations. In 2013 Tetra Tech completed an updated Quality Assurance Project Plan for submittal to Ecology and FERC in March/April 2014.

Tetra Tech assisted Avista with their annual reporting requirements to the Washington Department of Ecology and FERC and provided Avista with an assessment of water quality conditions within Lake Spokane and nutrient dynamics through 2018. In 2019, Tetra Tech continued to assist Avista with their Ecology and FERC reporting requirements and provided data analysis and evaluation of water quality data with regards to trout distribution within the reservoir. In 2020, Tetra Tech assisted Avista with revisions to the QAPP for continuous monitoring of DO for the summer of 2020. Tetra Tech participated in the deployment of continuous DO and temperature loggers at specific locations and depths in the reservoir in June 2020. Continuous data collected from June through September 2020 was analyzed by Tetra Tech staff and summarized in an annual report to Avista.

Question 5: (All Sample Types)

- Describe how sampling trips would be arranged relative to your base of operations for maximum efficiency.

a. Describe how you would efficiently mobilize/demobilize for trips.

Tetra Tech has project managers and field staff based in Flagstaff, Phoenix, and Tucson. Depending on the type of sampling needed and the location, staff from each of these offices would be mobilized to reduce driving time to a particular site. For example, sampling trips in northern Arizona could be readily carried out utilizing staff based in Flagstaff/Phoenix while trips in southern Arizona could be readily carried out utilizing staff in Phoenix/Tucson. Health and safety are foremost concerns during field work so two-person field teams would be assembled. Ideally, pre-trip planning would allow for sampling a number of sites during one mobilization to reduce overall travel time.

Question 6: (All Types Except Fish Tissue)

- This scope of work includes data collection and data entry using ADEQ protocols and data systems. https://static.azdeq.gov/wqd/sampling.pdf

a. Describe your data collection experience and data entry experience and as it relates to the scope of work.

Tetra Tech has assembled a strong team of support staff, field staff, field managers, project managers, and technical specialists to ensure sampling efforts in stream chemistry (along with SDAM), lake chemistry, biological and habitat, groundwater, and fish tissue sampling are setup for success. The Tetra Tech staff members included in Attachment 3-B show representation for each sampling method along with exceptional experience at the technical specialist level. Field managers will work to prepare for each sampling event, along with the designated field staff. Data collection efforts will be robust starting at the field level with constant communication with the managerial team members. This allows for swift data entry efforts to reach the project requirements. Tetra Tech’s support staff are equipped with experience in GIS and AutoCad along with a multitude of other modeling techniques to present and display data.

b. How do you ensure quality data that meets your customer’s needs?

Tetra Tech recognizes that the success of our company depends on the quality of the services and deliverables we provide for our clients. In today’s highly competitive business environment, professionalism in the conduct of project activities and a consistent approach to ensuring quality performance are essential. Tetra Tech’s quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) program serves as a guide to ensure that project quality objectives are met. This program is based on principles, requirements, and guidance provided in the American National https://static.azdeq.gov/wqd/sampling.pdf

Standards Institute (ANSI) and the International Standards Organization (ISO) 9001:2000 Standards. We apply these standards to all personnel who are responsible for activities that may affect the quality of data, products, and performance of project work. Upholding the QA/QC Program is the responsibility of all personnel in all levels of the company, including the Corporate Quality Assurance Director, Regional Managers, Office Managers, Program Managers, Project Managers, Administrative Managers, as well as non-management personnel.

Tetra Tech’s QA/QC Program provides the necessary guidance and sets forth requirements to accomplish the following objectives:

• To maintain quality and consistency across all aspects of technical and administrative work functions.

• To provide and document training activities vital to the corporation and/or project.

• To ensure the overall effectiveness of program management and technical services.

• To ensure that all measurements (e.g., engineering, scientific, etc.) are adequately documented, complete, verifiable, and scientifically and legally defensible.

• To ensure an acceptable level of project work performance through quality assessment and review of product deliverables.

• To maintain documentation (both hard-copy and electronic) of all project activities to provide traceability of all data and work products.

Program Guidance: Tetra Tech’s QA/QC Program requires detailed project plans be developed prior to project kickoff. Project performance is compared to these initial plans and closely monitored by the Project Manager to identify when changes or variances occur. Communication with the client ensures that events requiring a change in scope, schedule, budget, and level of quality are addressed in an organized and agreeable manner.

Peer Reviews: Tetra Tech requires that all technical deliverables undergo a documented, independent peer (or senior) review prior to delivery to the client by a staff member with at least equal experience and capabilities as the primary author. Peer reviews ensure:

• The work product accurately reflects the input data used.

• The work product complies with the requirements of the project, scope, schedule, budget, and level of quality.

• The work product satisfies the requirements listed in the project scope of work; and the work product is useful for the purpose intended.

• The work product is comprehensible and technically accurate; and project conclusions and recommendations are accurate, well-founded, and meet the project objectives.

• Calculations are correct, and assumptions are noted; Grammar, punctuation, and spelling are correct.

Client Feedback: Tetra Tech encourages Project Managers and Program Managers to solicit client feedback throughout the course of the project. All client observations are viewed as a potential opportunity for quality improvement.

QA Training: Training to familiarize employees with the policy, philosophy, and requirements of the QA Program is provided to all personnel within one year of employment and every two years thereafter. Until a new employee completes QA Program training, the Office Manager must directly oversee the quality of goods and services produced.

Program Assessments: Tetra Tech’s Quality Assurance Director or a designee at each office location performs periodic QA assessments to monitor compliance with our company QA program.

Our project teams are Tetra Tech’s frontline for providing excellent quality performance. We apply these QA/QC actions to our current projects and apply lessons learned to future projects. All Tetra Tech personnel play a vital role in achieving our QA/QC goals.

Question 7: (Stream Chemistry / Lake Chemistry)

- E. coli has an eight (8) hour holding time, which makes taking samples to a lab challenging when sampling multiple sites per day in remote locations.

a. What strategy will you use to collect credible E. coli data within holding times?

• Sampling events will be pre-planned with the laboratory and with secondary field staff from a local Tetra Tech office. Tetra Tech has staff located in Phoenix, Tucson, and Flagstaff readily available to serve as a courier to ensure E. coli samples are delivered to the laboratory within the (8) hour hold time. E. coli samples will be collected prior to any additional samples.

b. If your solution includes equipment, describe the method you are using and specifics regarding the equipment (such as a portable incubator).

• During the pre-planning process for Stream Chemistry and Lake Chemistry sampling events, travel time and sample collection times will be arranged in advance to allow for sufficient travel time for sample delivery. If it is deemed that the travel time may exceed the (8) hour hold time for E. coli, a portable incubator will be supplied to the field team.

• It is important to note that incubators take time to come up to temperature and stabilize. The incubator will be warmed prior to sample collection and processing. (Most portable incubators heat at 8C (14.4F) per hour). The time of year and ambient temperature will play factors and will be accounted for in the field.

• Of note, some incubators have continuous dials that the user needs to work with, checking the actual temperature inside the chamber and readjusting the dials may be necessary to achieve the desired temperature. Opening the incubator door to insert samples or check temperature has a strong effect on temperature inside the chamber. Working in Arizona, if in the Summer, it is likely that the ambient temperature will exceed the incubation temperature.

If this is the case, field staff will ensure the incubator is well insulated and kept in an air-conditioned vehicle.

• Both the Hach Corporation and Millipore Company’s portable incubators are of good reliability in the field.

Question 8: (Stream Chemistry, Lake Chemistry, Groundwater)

- Field parameters typically include: pH, dissolved oxygen (streams and lakes), conductivity, temperature, flow (streams) and depth (lakes).

a. List the make, model, range, resolution and accuracy of your equipment that will be used to complete the scope of work.

• A YSI Pro DSS will be used for field data collection during Stream Chemistry and Lake Chemistry sampling events. During groundwater sampling events the YSI Pro DSS can be equipped with a flow-through cell, especially if conducting low-flow sampling.

o The YSI Pro DSS offers exceptional accuracy for pH, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, and temperature. Turbidity, ORP, and depth sensors can also be added to the device.

The temperature sensor’s range is -5 to 70°C and accuracy is ±0.2°C.

o Tetra Tech also owns other water quality meters and probes that offer great accuracy and portability such as the Hach Pocket Pro+ Multi 2 tester and Apera Instruments PC60-Z, especially if sampling groundwater using a submersible pump (or similar) and a YSI meter is not an effective option due to its size.

o For measuring flow, Tetra Tech will use a Marsh McBirney Flo-Mate 2000 meter to accurately profile the channel. A spreadsheet for calculating flow volume will be used once field members have access to their computer.

o For measuring depth within a stream channel, Tetra Tech will also use the Marsh McBirney Flo-Mate 2000. If measuring depth in a lake a Garmin Striker Plus 4CV +

Transducer will be used. This depth finder also contains sonar capabilities for mapping the lake’s bottom contour. Additionally, Tetra Tech owns a 1,000ft Heron Water Level Meter with a depth gauge attachment for tagging total depths in wells (or lakes).

b. Will this minimum range, resolution and accuracy of multiprobe equipment be available when the contract is awarded, if not explain what countermeasures you intend to employ?

• The equipment listed above will be available when the contract is awarded.

Question 9: (Biological and Habitat)

- Describe your approach for conducting a SEM macroinvertebrate survey for perennial or intermittent streams, using ADEQ protocols: https://static.azdeq.gov/wqd/sampling.pdf

a. Under what conditions would you decide not to collect macroinvertebrate sample?

b. Do you have Biologists on staff with experience conducting macroinvertebrate surveys? Provide resume.

c. What experience do you have collecting algal/benthic diatom samples?

Provide project reference?

A two-person field team with considerable knowledge and background in biological science and environmental science would follow approved Stream Ecosystem Monitoring (SEM) sampling methods as detailed in ADEQ’s Surface Water Sampling Standard Operating Procedures manual. Field teams would be familiar with the USEPA’s bioassessment methods and indexes of biological integrity, proper functioning condition of riparian areas method, riparian vegetation taxonomic identification, macroinvertebrate taxonomic identification, benthic algae sampling methods, and Rosgen stream type identification and pebble counts.

1. Macroinvertebrate sampling would be conducted to assess the aquatic and wildlife designated use of perennial streams. ADEQ has developed two Indexes of Biological Integrity: Warm water and Cold water. Habitat evaluations would be used to assess channel, riparian and habitat conditions, and potential stressors on macroinvertebrate communities. Chlorophyll protocols would be those from EPA’s 2013 National River and Stream Assessment methods and periphyton/benthic algae protocols would be based on the EPA’s Multihabitat Sampling Approach from the Rapid Bioassessment Protocols. A site habitat assessment would provide ecological information needed to interpret macroinvertebrate bioassessments and bottom deposits and habitat and chemistry data would provide an ecological context in which to place the macroinvertebrate data. Causes and sources of aquatic life impairment would be identified using chemical, physical, biological, and land use information produced in a broader habitat assessment, which would consist of the following:

a. Stream reach aesthetics

b. Rosgen stream type identification

c. Reach length and complexity

d. Reach observations https://static.azdeq.gov/wqd/sampling.pdf

e. Depositional features

f. Pebble counts

g. Riffle geometry

h. Canopy density

i. Riparian species

j. Biological observations throughout reach

k. Regeneration potential of riparian trees

l. Riparian vegetation cover

m. Non-point source observations

n. Pfankuch channel stability evaluation

o. Proper functioning condition assessment

p. Habitat assessment

Habitat for macroinvertebrates includes the rocks and sediments of the stream bottom, the plants in and around the stream, leaf litter and other decomposing organic material that falls into the stream, and submerged logs, sticks, and woody debris. Macroinvertebrates need the shelter and food these habitats provide and tend to congregate in areas that provide the best shelter, the most food, and the most dissolved oxygen. A habitat survey would examine these aspects to help rate the stream according to their quality. Monitoring for water quality conditions such as low dissolved oxygen, temperature, nutrients, and pH would help identify which pollutants are responsible for impacts to a stream.

Periphyton samples would be collected during periods of stable stream flow. High flows can scour the stream bed, flushing the periphyton downstream. Recolonization of substrates is faster after less severe floods and in streams with nutrient enrichment. A three-week delay following high, bottom-scouring stream flows allows for recolonization and succession to a mature periphyton community. Two sampling approaches could be used for natural substrate sampling. Multihabitat sampling best characterizes the benthic algae in the reach, but results may not be sensitive to subtle water quality changes because of habitat variability between reaches. Species composition of assemblages from a single habitat should reflect water quality differences among streams more precisely than multi-habitat sampling but impacts in other habitats in the reach may be missed. Multihabitat sampling would be conducted at the reach scale (30-40 stream widths) to ensure sampling the diversity of habitats that occur in the stream. Ideally, single habitat sampling would also be conducted at the reach scale. A shorter length of stream could probably be sampled for single habitat samples compared to multihabitat samples because the chosen single habitat is usually common.

Question 10: (Streamflow Duration Assessment Method) (SDAM)

- Describe your approach for identifying riparian vegetation and their wetland plant status. Include your approach for field identification of macroinvertebrates.

a. What resources would you use in the field to make the identifications required by the SDAM Beta method (reference documents, apps, etc.)?

b. Describe how would you provide quality control on these identifications?

Riparian vegetation would be identified using a number of key identification resources, including Arizona Flora, Plants of Arizona, Biotic Communities of the Southwestern United States and Northwestern Mexico, Grasses of the Southwestern United States, The Trees and Shrubs of the Southwestern Deserts, and Field Guide to Forest and Mountain Plants of Northern Arizona. Senior Environmental Specialist Keith Pohs collected more than 10,000 vegetation data points throughout Arizona working for 4 years on the Southwest Regional GAP Analysis vegetation mapping project for the USGS Southwest Biological Science Center. He is highly familiar with riparian and upland plant species of the Colorado Plateau, Mojave

Desert, Sonoran Desert, Chihuahuan Desert, Sky Island, and Mogollon Rim-Southern Rocky Mountain ecoregions. Wetland plant status would be assessed referring to the 2018 Arid West and Western Mountains, Valleys, and Coast wetland plant lists from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2018, National Wetland Plant List, version 3.4.

Question 11: (Fish Tissue)

- Describe your approach for collecting representative consumable fish from lakes or streams that could be used to issue a fish consumption advisory?

a. What equipment would you use?

b. What countermeasures would you employ if you could not collect the required 5 individual fish per species limit needed for an advisory?

c. Describe your chain of custody and labeling process.

Fish tissue sampling teams would be staffed with personnel experienced in ichthyological taxonomy and fish handling, tissue sampling, and sample preparation and preservation. Maintaining sample integrity from the point of collection through sample processing and analysis is critical to meeting data quality objectives. All potential sources of extraneous contamination would be identified before sample collection and handling, if possible, and steps would be taken to ensure their elimination or minimization. Fish would be handled using clean nitrile gloves at all phases of sample processing. Whether whole fish, fillet, biopsy punch sampling, and/or compositing is employed, fish-to-sample processing would occur as quickly as possible following collection of fish from the waterbody.

Fish measurements associated with tissue sampling taken in the field would be dictated by the SAP and are likely to include the following parameters: species identification, length, weight, and examination for any external abnormalities. Some measurements, such as length and weight, may be performed by the team who capture fish specimens (collection team); alternatively, the personnel who take tissue samples (sampling team) may be the first project participants to take these metrics or it may be appropriate for this work to be duplicated by the sampling team. The SAP may specify a variety of sizes/ages of fish to be sampled depending upon the nature of the work (e.g., determination of a correlation between fish size or age and analyte concentration in fish tissue). If fish will not be returned to the water, euthanizing specimens prior to taking measurements would make field activities more efficient.

Depending on the project SAP, sample preparation beyond whole fish collection, non-lethal biopsy punch, or egg collection (i.e. filleting, organ harvesting, and sample compositing) would be performed in a laboratory cleanroom-type environment, free of metals or organics, and utilizing positive pressure filtered air. Certain factors such as parameter(s) of concern, large specimen sizes, limited cooler capacity, or lack of suitable staging sites may encourage filleting be performed in the field.

The project SAP would specify if fillets are to be prepared skin-on or skin-off, which may be dependent upon the chemicals being sampled for. Removal of skin may lower reported concentrations of organic chemicals while retention of skin may lower results for other analytes such as mercury. Fish would be resected into fillets under laboratory clean-room conditions within 48 hours of collection and ideally without freezing of tissue prior to resection.

A method of identifying and labeling samples would be provided in the SAP and strictly followed. At a minimum, sample labels would include the following information:

• The collecting organization name;

• The project name/number;

• The sample ID number;

• The date the sample was taken; and

• The time the sample was taken.

• Sample location information (e.g., reach code);

• The sampler’s name and/or team member identification number;

• Species name or code (see Attachment F for codes, common names, and abbreviations for fish species used by FWP);

• Analysis to be performed;

• Additional sample ID numbers (e.g., composite or individual specimen numbers); and

• Preservative used (e.g., formalin)

All samples would be maintained, stored, and transferred under chain of custody (COC). COC procedures begin when the sample is collected and remain the responsibility of a sampling team member until the samples are relinquished to a laboratory or disposed of. In general, to maintain chain-of-custody, samples must remain in the physical possession (i.e. being carried by or within view) of the COC form signatory unless COC-sealed and locked in a restricted access location. Use of a COC form would ensure that samples are traceable from the time of collection through processing and analysis until final disposition and would be required by the analyzing laboratory. The COC form originates with the personnel who performed the sampling and remains with the samples (typically sealed in a plastic bag attached to or in the sample cooler) as it passes to other personnel for additional processing, shipping, etc.

Equipment List:

• First aid kit

• Cold weather kit (seasonal)

• Collection permit (if required)

• Sampling and Analysis Plan (SAP) copy

• Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) copy

• Health and Safety Plan (HASP) copy

• Fish Tissue Sampling Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) copy

• Project field logbook

• Taxonomic key

• Field sample collection form

• Sample labels (set)

• Chain of custody (COC) (one for each sample cooler plus two extra)

• COC seals (one for each sample cooler plus two extra)

• Carrier airbills/shipping forms (one for each sample cooler plus two extra)

• Field clipboard/form case

• Indelible writing device (e.g. pencil, Rite-in-the-Rain® pen)

• Chemical splash goggles

• Nitrile gloves (100ct. box)

• Paper towels (roll)

• Anesthetization/holding vessel (e.g. live-well or bucket)

• Inert or foil-wrapped blunt instrument (for euthanizing fish)

• Live cage (for containing fish in surface waterbody)

• Minnow net (for collecting small species from livewell/bucket)

• Holding tray

• Inert (e.g. glass) cutting board

• Fish measuring board (min. precision – ±1mm)

• Measuring tape (mm increments)

• Portable balance (min. precision – ±1g)

• Calipers (min. precision – ±1mm)

• Heavy duty aluminum foil (roll)

• Plastic Bags (2 gallon, box of)

• Plastic bags (1 gallon, box of)

• Plastic bags (1 quart, box of)

• Plastic bags (33 gallon)

• Plastic wrap (roll)

• Packing/strapping tape (roll)

• Cooler/ice chest

• Wet/blue/dry ice

• Bubble wrap, absorbent packing material

• Forceps

• Fillet knife

• Scaling knife or scalpel

• Pliers

• Scissors or utility knife

• Deionized water (gallons)

• Camera – macro-capable, electronic storage media, extra batteries (for voucher photographs)

• Preservative/fixative1 (typically 10% borax-buffered formalin or 37% buffered formaldehyde, enough volume for samples & vouchers)

• Reagents - acetone, hexane, methanol, 20% nitric acid (volumes sufficient for cleaning equipment and blank samples)

• Food-grade poly tubing (rolls)

• Plastic cable ties (30-50 count package)

End of Attachment 3-A

Attachment 3-A Method Proposal (Method of Approach)