Designing an Estuarine Monitoring Program: Choosing from the Parameter Smorgasbord

Two of the major considerations in the planning of an estuarine monitoring program are defining the problem, and choosing the parameters to be monitored. To define the problem the purpose and objectives for monitoring must be clearly stated. The problem may be to describe present conditions, or to determine changes which have occured. Choosing which parameters to monitor involves: conducting a literature search including a survey of the "grey literature"; examining the history of the region; and assessing current and anticipated future conditions of the study area and the surrounding land and/or water. After this information has been collected and analyzed, the final choice of parameters to be monitored can be made.