Resources for Planning Projects that Use Existing Data

This page is under development. Below are some links to help you get started.

Data Quality Assessment - Before existing data can be used, it will need to be assessed against its intended use.
Chapter 3 of the Guidance for Quality Assurance Project Plans (G-5) (PDF 111pp, 401K About PDF) identifies elements to consider when planning projects that use existing data.
Checklist for Quality Concerns (PDF 6pp, 148K About PDF) - Draft checklist and list of resources for evaluating secondary data.
EPA's Science Policy Council Assessment Factors - General Assessment Factors for Evaluating the Quality of Scientific and Technical Information
Software - For links to free software for performing data quality assessment, see Quality-Related Resources - Software. EPA has a site license for SAS for EPA employees - for information, see EPA SAS Support Home Page.