Submission of Data
On-line Database Now Available. Access it through the Ohio EPA eBusiness Center.
Submission of data is voluntary. Qualified Data Collectors (QDCs) are expected to carry out the monitoring program as described in their project study plan. There is no obligation to submit the data upon completion of all or part of the project. However, if the QDC chooses to submit data, he or she must submit all of the data collected. If part of the project study plan could not be completed, then an explanation of the circumstances should be provided to explain missing data.
The Credible Data Law (enacted 2003) required Ohio EPA to “establish and maintain a computerized database,” “make the data available to other agencies and all interested persons…,” and store the data “in such as manner that they are easily retrieved and available for sharing with other agencies and all other interested persons.” The resulting system was designed to accept (and make available to anyone interested) water quality data collected by state agencies and Credible Data Qualified Data Collectors (QDCs).
Credible Data Online Application
The Credible Data Online Application (CDOA) is now accessible online through Ohio EPA's eBusiness gateway (https://ebiz.epa.ohio.gov/login.jsp). Data must be submitted through this system to be officially accepted as credible data, with the exception of Level 3 biological data. All Level 3 fish and macroinvertebrate data must be submitted using paper data sheets in accordance with the data reporting requirements in the Credible Data rules (OAC 3745-4-06 [PDF 25K]). The only data that QDCs can enter into the CDOA is data from approved Project Study Plans.
Anyone can access and view the online data in this system simply by obtaining an account and a UserID. The data in this system will come from QDCs and other state agencies (e.g., Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Ohio Department of Transportation, Ohio Department of Agriculture).
The CDOA User's Guide available at the link below is a work in progress. We recommend saving the link and/or using an electronic version of the guide, since it will be updated to reflect users' comments.
You're comments are welcome and appreciated!
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