ABSTRACT
It must be recognized that there are risks associated with changing the protocols of an ongoing sampling program. In some cases, there may be a substantial period of record established for a particular lake or stream that is based on preexisting protocols. Multiple waters within a particular study area may already have been surveyed and characterized with a particular set of protocols that may differ in important ways from newly developed protocols. A change in approach may introduce bias into future efforts to examine patterns in water chemistry across time or across space. Therefore, changes must be carefully considered, and the likely results of those changes (if any) must be evaluated prior to making a wholesale change in sampling or analysis methods. This transition plan provides a framework for considering such protocol changes, and their likely effects on the resulting data, prior to full implementation of any new protocols.
