1.1This guide covers what and how information should be recorded in the field when sampling a groundwater monitoring well. Following these recommendations will provide adequate documentation in most monitoring programs. In some situations, it may be necessary to record additional or different information, or both, to thoroughly document the sampling event. In other cases, it may not be necessary to record all of the information recommended in this guide. The level of documentation will be based on site-specific conditions and regulatory requirements.

1.2This guide is limited to written documentation of a groundwater sampling event. Other methods of documentation (that is, electronic and audiovisual) can be used but are not addressed in this guide. The specific activities addressed in this guide include documentation of static water level measurement, monitoring well purging, monitoring well sampling, field measurements, groundwater sample preparation, and groundwater sample shipment.

1.3This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety, health, and environmental practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

1.4This guide offers an organized collection of information or a series of options and does not recommend a specific course of action. This document cannot replace education or experience and should be used in conjunction with professional judgment. Not all aspects of this guide may be applicable in all circumstances. This ASTM standard is not intended to represent or replace the standard of care by which the adequacy of a given professional service must be judged, nor should this document be applied without consideration of a project's many unique aspects. The word “Standard” in the title of this document means only that the document has been approved through the ASTM consensus process.

1.5This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.