Quality Assurance (QA) is 'the activities to ensure standards (in monitoring) are being met'. This includes developing procedures and processes for quality control (techniques and activities that are used to fulfil the requirements for quality), audit methods and documentation; and training. The aims of looking at QA in monitoring are to give confidence that what is being collected and reported is both of a high quality and of a comparable quality.

 

The International Standards Organisation (ISO) drafts standards which relate to marine sampling. There are two other organisations which directly relate and provide expertise to ISO. The European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) and the British Standards Institute (BSI). The three organisations are integrated in such a way as to prevent duplication of effort and any ISO standards developed are automatically ratified and adopted by BSI and CEN without modification. The Environment Agency represents the UK input into the development of these standards. Further input is provided through the Inter-Agency Marine Monitoring Group (MMG) , the National Marine Monitoring Programme Working Group (NMMP WG) and the National Marine Biological Analytical Quality Control Scheme (NMBAQC) all of which have representation from JNCC. 

 

One of JNCC's special functions is to 'establish common standards throughout Great Britain for the monitoring of nature conservation'.  JNCC is keen to promote quality assurance and standards for data collection based around sharing information and establishing best practice.  The establishment of common standards does not mean that monitoring has to be undertaken using prescriptive and rigidly-applied procedures but instead can be sufficiently flexible to take into account natural geographical variation across the UK and to accommodate the varying requirements and operational practices of different agencies.  However, standards need to be sufficient to ensure that there is consistency in application of guidance and the results of monitoring.

 

JNCC is involved in various aspects of QA and standards work to ensure there is some consistency in monitoring. This work includes: