»Monitoring Protocols
Protocols are the core of the monitoring program, describing what will be measured where, how, and how often. Protocols are detailed study plans designed to ensure that changes detected by monitoring actually are occurring; that is, that they do not stem from measurement variability introduced when different people or methods are used.
Each monitoring protocol includes a narrative providing the rationale for selecting a particular resource for monitoring, a framework for making necessary decisions or revisions relative to that protocol and its development, and standard operating procedures (SOPs) that explain, in a step-by-step manner, how each procedure will be accomplished. Protocols also identify supporting materials critical to their development and implementation, such as databases, reports, maps, geospatial information, species lists, species guilds, analysis tools tested, and any decisions resulting from these exploratory analyses.
Because most protocols address multiple vital signs, the NCPN program is organized around protocols, rather than vital signs. The table below shows the relationship between NCPN protocols and vital signs.
| Protocol | Vital signs addressed |
| Air Quality | Ozone |
| Climate | Climate and Weather |
| Human Demographics | Human demographics |
| Integrated Riparian | Riparian plant communities Surface water dynamics Groundwater dynamics Stream/Wetland hydrologic function |
| Integrated Upland | Native grasslands Shrublands Predominant plant communities Upland nutrient cycle Biological soil crusts Upland hydrologic function Upland soil/site stability |
| Invasive Exotic Plants | Early detection of invasive plants |
| Land Condition | Land Condition |
| Land Cover/Land Use | Fire dynamics Land cover Insect/disease outbreaks Landscape connectivity and fragmentation |
| Landbirds | Landbirds |
| Macroinvertebrates | Aquatic macroinvertebrates |
| Peregrine | Peregrine Falcons |
| Seeps, Springs and Hanging Gardens | Seeps, springs, and hanging garden communities |
| Water Quality | Water Chemistry |
Monitoring I Monitoring Protocols | Monitoring in Parks