Revisions to Chapter 62-160, F.A.C., Quality Assurance, and the DEP Standard Operating Procedures

The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) published a Notice of Rule Development for Chapter 62-160, F.A.C. (Quality Assurance) in the Florida Administrative Register on July 17, 2024. DEP will host a virtual workshop to present a summary of draft revisions to Chapter 62-160, F.A.C., and incorporated documents.

Workshop Information

Date and Time: Monday, November 4, 2024, 1:00 p.m. (GoToWebinar)
Register for the QA Rule Virtual Public Workshop

QA Rule Workshop Agenda

Public Comments Welcome!

Want to comment on the proposed revisions to 62-160, F.A.C. or the Standard Operating Procedures?

Submit Your Comments During The Rule Development Period.

Comments Are Due By Close Of Business, November 27, 2024.

Proposed Revisions

The proposed revisions include: (1) updates to the DEP field and laboratory Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), (2) address miscellaneous, minor revisions to various rules within the chapter and (3) provide clarification and increased flexibility.

The proposed revisions will:

1. Expand procedures for continuous monitoring with field meters;

2. Provide instructions for collection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances samples;

3. Provide additional options for field measurement of chlorine, transparency and turbidity;

4. Modify sampling proficiency requirements for bioassessment methods; and

5. Incorporate updates to lab certification standards since the last rulemaking in 2017.

These revised documents have changes tracked. Documents with numerous changes are best viewed in the “No Markup” review mode. Any substantive changes are highlighted.

Summary of draft revisions to Chapter 62-160, F.A.C.

Summary of draft revisions to DEP SOPs and other Incorporated Documents.

Category	Documents	Notes
Chapter 62-160, F.A.C., Quality Assurance	Proposed Revisions to Ch. 62-160 F.A.C. (revised 10/28/2024)	Can only be viewed in strike-through/underline mode. All draft changes have been highlighted.
DEP-SOP-001/01	FA 1000 – Administrative Procedures FC 1000 – Field Cleaning and Decontamination Procedures FD 1000 - Documentation Procedures FM 1000 - Field Planning and Mobilization FQ 1000 - Field Quality Control Requirements FS 1000 - General Sampling Procedures FS 2000 - General Aqueous Sampling FS 2100 - Surface Water Sampling FS 2200 - Groundwater Sampling FS 2300 - Drinking Water Sampling FS 2400 - Wastewater Sampling (revised 10/28/2024) FS 3000 - Soil Sampling FS 4000 – Sediment Sampling FS 6000 – General Biological Tissue Sampling FS 7000 - General Biological Community Sampling FT 1000 - General Field Testing and Measurement FT 1100 - Field Measurement of Hydrogen Ion Activity (pH) FT 1200 - Field Measurement of Specific Conductance and Conductivity FT 1300 - Field Measurement of Salinity FT 1500 - Field Measurement of Dissolved Oxygen (DO) FT 1600 - Field Measurement of Turbidity FT 1700 – Field Measurement of Light Penetration FT 1900 – Field Continuous Monitoring Meters FT 2000 - Field Measurement of Residual Chlorine FT 2100 – Field Measurement of Nitrate FT 3000 - Aquatic Habitat Characterization	No revisions are being proposed for FS 5000, FS 8100, FS 8200, FT 1400, and FT 1800. Any changes are for formatting purposes only.
DEP-SOP-002/01	LT 7000 - Determination of Biological Indices (revised 10/28/2024) LQ 1000 – Laboratory Quality Control LD 1000 – Laboratory Documentation
DEP-SOP-003/11	BRN 1000 - Biological Reconnaissance Field Method LVI 1000 - Lake Vegetation Index Methods SCI 1000 - Stream Condition Index Methods
Incorporated Forms	FD 9000-3 – Physical/Chemical Characterization Field Sheet FD 9000-4 – Stream/River Habitat Assessment Sketch Sheet FD 9000-24 - Groundwater Sampling Log FD 9000-27 - Lake Vegetation Index Field Sheet FD 9000-31 – Lake Observation Field Sheet FD 9000-34 - Stream Habitat Assessment Training Checklist and Event Log FD 9000-35 - Stream Condition Index Training and Evaluation Checklist and Event Log	No revisions or minor changes are being proposed for FD 9000-1, FD 9000-5, FD 9000-6, FD 9000-25, FD 9000-32, and FD 9000-33. Minor changes include replacing STORET with WIN and are for formatting purposes only.
Other Incorporated Documents	Alternative and Modified Analytical Laboratory Methods (DEP-QA-001/01) Process for Assessing Data Usability (DEP-EA-001/07) Sampling and Use of the Stream Condition Index (SCI) for Assessing Flowing Waters: A Primer (DEP-SAS-001/11) (changes highlighted but not tracked) Sampling and Use of the Lake Vegetation Index (LVI) for Assessing Lake Plant Communities of Florida: A Primer (DEP-SAS-002/11) Applicability of Chlorophyll a Methods (DEP-SAS-002/10)

Revisions to Chapter 62-160, F.A.C., Quality Assurance, and the DEP Standard Operating Procedures

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