EIMS Symposium Portrays Benefits and Obstacles
Surrounding Groundwater Data Management
BY TODD MILLER, MALCOLM
PIRNIE, AND ELIE HADDAD,
LOCUS TECHNOLOGIES
On 26 January 2005, GRA held its first conference on Environmental Information Management Systems (EIMS) in San Jose, California. The attendance far exceeded expectations, as more than 140 attendants, including many walk-in registrants, crowded the standingroom-only conference room, confirming the vast interest in this topic. The event was co-sponsored by Daniel B. Stephens & Associates, Inc and Locus Technologies, Inc.
Mr. Tom Mohr, GRA’s Vice President, initiated the conference and introduced Mr. Elie Haddad of Locus Technologies, the chairman and organizer of the conference, who described how in most companies, environmental information is stored in disconnected and disjointed systems. The value of the data far exceeds any reasonable amount that companies could afford to spend to re-create it, so that there is an immense need to securely store and efficiently manage the data collected.
Electronic Data Management and Delivery
Mr. Cedric Lucas (Locus Technologies) outlined how Locus used its products LocusFocus and EIMTM to provide ChevronTexaco with a centralized electronic data management system capable of storing their environmental information from a variety of sites – from retail gasoline stations, to bulk terminals, to refineries and Superfund sites with more that 5 million analytical records. The system streamlined the process, centralizing the information in an internet-accessible and secure location. Mr. Bosco Ramirez (Severn Trent Laboratories) presented key aspects about the new realm of electronic data deliverables (EDDs) and how they present distinct challenges to the laboratory and environmental industry. Laboratories have to standardize their processes internally among the different laboratories in different states. Mr. Ramirez urged bringing the laboratory into the planning stage of the project so that they can help identify the best way to document and transmit electronic data.
Electronic Data Collection
Dr. Dave Rich (Geotech Computer Systems) stressed the inherent complexity of environmental projects, the desire to manipulate data in numerous ways, and the need to retrieve and evaluate data quickly due to budgetary constraints. By creating a centralized open database, data storage and retrieval becomes quick and simple.
Mr. Dan Ducasse (Locus Technologies) presented three case studies where a treatment system was upgraded to include automated data collection. The electronic data collection and telemetry systems allowed on-line examination of system operations and remote data collection, as well as automated alarm components. This reduced the number of required trips to the sites, increased the up-time of the systems, and lowered operation and maintenance costs.
Environmental Information Management Systems
Dr. Nicole Sweetland (Daniel B. Stephens & Associates) presented a system that can be used to spatially view environmental information, and review historical information in summary table format for a single point over time or for a single event with numerous sampling points. The system demonstrated capabilities of being linked to other programs that display geologic and/or historic information.
Dr. Arnold Gray (EarthSoft) demonstrated the use of EQuIS, a proprietary product, which combines Oracle’s data storage and management capabilities with various vendor software packages(ArcGIS, CARStat, MS Excel, etc.)
Dr. Gray stressed the need to push the responsibility for generating and submitting quality electronic data to the laboratories; catching errors early in the data validation process saves time and money.
Dr. Anne Happel (EcoInteractive) presented information about Geotracker, the SWQCB’s data management system for UST and SLIC sites in California. The system is utilized by regulators to better and proactively manage release sites. As of January 2005, the State is requiring all site owners to submit information electronically to Geotracker. By July 2005, the state will rely upon the electronic report as the legally binding document.
Mr. Peter Biffar (Terradex) presented information about the Terradex system, which is used to assess institutional and land use controls to ensure that regional impacts are controlled. The system can be used to monitor changes in site conditions, such as ownership change, zoning changes, etc., and can alert the land owner, client and/or regulatory agency of any pending enforcement actions.
Ms. Cris Tulloch (SCVWD) discussed the use of the SCVWD’s information management system to manage the enormous volume of environmental data related to the more than 3,000 active contaminant release sites in the Santa Clara Valley. The system uses Oracle to store the electronic data, ArcGIS to spatially visualize data, and various database query functions to display summary information.
Staged Electronic Data Deliverables
Mr. Joseph Solsky (US Army Corps of Engineers) presented the need for electronic data transmissions to be in an “open” data standard. By using Staged EDDs (SEDDs) the number of data deliverable formats currently used by laboratories could be reduced from 300 to less than 30. By staging the data, customers who require different levels of quality control with a single data format would be served more easily.
Mr. Richard Amano (Laboratory Data Consultants) provided an example of how SEDDs can be used to transmit, validate, and populate a database with environmental information. The SEDD is prepared by the laboratory in XML format and transmitted to the client. The data are then parsed and sent to an automated electronic validation tool, which validates the data. The validated data are then uploaded to a project-specific database where it can be accessed by numerous desktop applications.
Todd Miller is a senior hydrogeologist with Malcolm Pirnie and Elie Haddad is Vice President of Locus Technologies and EIMS Conference chair. James Strandberg, Vice President of Malcolm Pirnie, also contributed to this article.
This article was originally published in HydroVision Newsletter - Spring 2005.
Related Links:
> EIMS II Seminar - August 22, 2007 in Irvine, CA
