ASTM E1849-96 (2013) PDF

Full title and description

ASTM E1849-96 (2013) — Standard Guide for Fish and Wildlife Incident Monitoring and Reporting. This guide provides recommended procedures for planning and conducting investigations of fish and wildlife incidents, documenting observations and samples, reporting incident data, and supporting ecological risk assessment and regulatory decision-making.

Abstract

Provides guidance to state and federal agencies, industry, and investigators on collecting, recording, analyzing, and reporting data from alleged adverse effects to nontarget fish and wildlife. The guide emphasizes thorough investigation to determine probable cause, proper documentation and chain-of-custody for samples, summary formats for reporting incidents, and the use of incident data in risk assessments and regulatory contexts.

General information

• Status: Withdrawn (no replacement). The standard was withdrawn in January 2022.
• Publication date: Originally approved 1996 (designation E1849-96) with subsequent reaffirmations/revisions (listed as E1849-96(2007) and E1849-96(2013); 2013 edition published March 1, 2013).
• Publisher: ASTM International (formerly known as the American Society for Testing and Materials).
• ICS / categories: Relevant classification includes environmental monitoring and accident/disaster control categories (examples cited in database entries: 03.120.30; 13.200).
• Edition / version: Designation E1849-96, reaffirmed/edited in later years and published in the 2013 edition (commonly cited as E1849-96(2013)).
• Number of pages: 28–29 pages depending on the published revision/format.

Scope

The guide covers planning and completing investigations to determine the cause of alleged fish or wildlife incidents, recommendations for documenting and reporting incidents, information needed to support risk assessments, summary descriptions of relevant databases and regulatory authorities, and guidance on sample collection, chain-of-custody, and quality control. It is intended to help standardize the collection and reporting of incident data so that results can be interpreted consistently for regulatory and risk-assessment purposes.

Key topics and requirements

• Definitions and terminology for fish and wildlife incidents (including mortalities and the potential for sublethal effect reporting as monitoring evolves).
• Significance and use of incident data in ecological risk assessment and regulatory decision-making.
• Planning field investigations, interagency coordination, and safety/precautionary measures.
• Chain-of-custody procedures and recommended documentation for samples and observations.
• Recommended formats and content for incident reports, including documentation required for regulatory review.
• Summary of existing ecological risk databases and lists of agencies that maintain incident records.
• Quality control, standard operating procedures, and analytic/data reporting considerations.

Typical use and users

Used by environmental and natural resource professionals — including state and federal wildlife and fisheries agencies, environmental consultants, industry environmental compliance staff, forensic and analytical laboratories, and regulatory reviewers — to guide the investigation, documentation, and reporting of suspected fish and wildlife incidents. It served as a reference for preparing incident reports suitable for inclusion in ecological risk assessments and regulatory files.

Related standards

Developed under ASTM technical committees overseeing environmental assessment and ecological guidance (committee listings have included E47 subcommittee references in earlier listings and later jurisdiction under Committee E50). The guide was withdrawn in 2022 and listed as having no direct replacement; users typically consult other ASTM environmental and sampling standards, regional regulatory guidance, and protocols for chain-of-custody and ecological risk assessment when updating procedures.

Keywords

fish mortality, wildlife incident, incident monitoring, incident reporting, ecological risk assessment, chain of custody, field investigation, sample documentation, regulatory reporting, environmental incident guide

FAQ

Q: What is this standard?

A: ASTM E1849-96(2013) is a standard guide titled "Standard Guide for Fish and Wildlife Incident Monitoring and Reporting" that provided recommended practices for investigating and reporting alleged adverse effects to nontarget fish and wildlife.

Q: What does it cover?

A: It covers planning and conducting incident investigations, documentation and chain-of-custody for samples, recommended report formats, summaries of databases and regulatory authorities, and information necessary to support ecological risk assessments and regulatory decisions.

Q: Who typically uses it?

A: State and federal agencies, industry environmental staff, environmental consultants, analytical laboratories, and regulatory reviewers involved in wildlife/fish incident investigations and ecological risk assessments.

Q: Is it current or superseded?

A: It is withdrawn. ASTM lists E1849-96 (including the 2013 reaffirmation edition) as withdrawn in January 2022 and indicates no direct replacement at time of withdrawal. Users should consult current ASTM publications, committee outputs, and regulatory guidance for updated procedures.

Q: Is it part of a series?

A: It was produced under ASTM committee activity for environmental assessment and related subcommittees (historically associated with E47 subcommittee listings and later referenced under E50 jurisdiction). It functioned as an independent guide rather than one test-method in a numbered test series, and it was reaffirmed/edited in subsequent years (2007, 2013) before withdrawal.

Q: What are the key keywords?

A: Fish and wildlife incident, monitoring, reporting, incident investigation, chain-of-custody, ecological risk, mortality, sublethal effects, regulatory reporting.