Are you referring to the credible data law?  Our state legislature
imposed that upon us.  I cut-n-pasted the code sections below.  You can
find the water quality laws on the Iowa State Legislature website (best
search for me is to find the Iowa Code's table of contents and then to
scroll through).

Donna Buell


455B.193 Qualifications for collection of credible data. 
For purposes of this part, all of the following shall apply: 
1. Data is not credible data unless the data originates from studies and
samples collected by the department, a professional designee of the
department, or a qualified volunteer. For purposes of this subsection,
"professional designee" includes governmental agencies other than the
department, and a person hired by, or under contract for compensation
with, the department to collect or study data. 
2. All information submitted by a qualified volunteer shall be reviewed
and approved or disapproved by the department. The qualified volunteer
shall submit a site specific plan with data which includes information
used to obtain the data, the sampling and analysis plan, and quality
control and quality assurance procedures used in the monitoring process.
The qualified volunteer must provide proof to the department that the
water monitoring plan was followed. The department shall review all data
collected by a qualified volunteer, verify the accuracy of the data
collected by a qualified volunteer, and determine that all components of
the water monitoring plan were followed. 
3. The department shall retain all information submitted by a qualified
volunteer submitting the information for a period of not less than ten
years from the date of receipt by the department. All information
submitted shall be a public record. 
4. The department shall adopt rules establishing requirements for a
person to become a qualified volunteer. 
The department of natural resources shall develop a methodology for
water quality assessments as used in the section 303(d) lists and assess
the validity of the data.

455B.194 Credible data required. 
1. The department shall use credible data when doing any of the
following: 
a. Developing and reviewing any water quality standard. 
b. Developing any statewide water quality inventory or other water
assessment report. 
c. Determining whether any water of the state is to be placed on or
removed from any section 303(d) list. 
d. Determining whether any water of the state is supporting its
designated use or other classification. 
e. Determining any degradation of a water of the state under 40 C.F.R. §
131.12. 
f. Establishing a total maximum daily load for any water of the state. 
2. Notwithstanding subsection 1, credible data shall not be required for
any section 305(b) report and credible data shall not be required for
the establishment of a designated use or other classification of a water
of the state. 
3. This section shall not be construed to require credible data as
defined in section 455B.171 , subsection 4, in order for the department
to bring an enforcement action for an illegal discharge.

455B.195 Use or analysis of credible data. 
1. For any use or analysis of credible data described in section
455B.194 , subsection 1, all of the following shall apply: 
a. The use of credible data shall be consistent with the requirements of
the federal Water Pollution Control Act, 33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq. 
b. The data quality for removal of water of the state from any list of
impaired waters including any section 303(d) list shall be the same as
the data quality for adding a water to that list. 
c. A water of the state shall not be placed on any section 303(d) list
if the impairment is caused solely by violations of national pollutant
discharge elimination system program permits or stormwater permits
issued pursuant to section 455B.103A and the enforcement of the
pollution control measures is required. 
d. A water of the state shall not be placed on any section 303(d) list
if the data shows an impairment, but existing technology-based effluent
limits or other required pollution control measures are adequate to
achieve applicable water quality standards. 
e. If a pollutant causing an impairment is unknown, the water of the
state may be placed on a section 303(d) list. However, the department
shall continue to monitor the water of the state to determine the cause
of impairment before a total maximum daily load is established for the
water of the state and a water of the state listed with an unknown
status shall retain a low priority for a total maximum daily load
development until the cause of the impairment is determined unless the
department, after taking into consideration the use of the water of the
state and the severity of the pollutant, identifies compelling reasons
as to why the water of the state should not have a low priority. 
f. When evaluating the waters of the state, the department shall develop
and maintain three separate listings including a section 303(d) list, a
section 305(b) report, and a listing for which further investigative
monitoring is necessary. The section 305(b) report shall be a summary of
all potential impairments for which credible data is not required. If
credible data is not required for a section 305(b) report, the placement
of a water of the state on any section 305(b) report alone is not
sufficient evidence for the water of the state's placement on any
section 303(d) list. When developing a section 303(d) list, the
department is not required to use all data, but the department shall
assemble and evaluate all existing and readily available water
quality-related data and information. The department shall provide
documentation to the regional administrator of the federal environmental
protection agency to support the state's determination to list or not to
list its waters. 
g. The department shall take into consideration any naturally occurring
condition when placing or removing any water of the state on any section
303(d) list, and establishing or allocating responsibility for a total
maximum daily load. 
h. Numerical standards shall have a preference over narrative standards.
A narrative standard shall not constitute the basis for determining an
impairment unless the department identifies specific factors as to why a
numeric standard is not sufficient to assure adequate water quality. 
i. If the department has obtained credible data for a water of the
state, the department may also use historical data for that particular
water of the state for the purpose of determining whether any trends
exist for that water of the state. 
2. This section shall not be construed to require or authorize the
department to perform any act listed in section 455B.194 , subsection 1,
not otherwise required or authorized by applicable law.




-----Original Message-----
From: Iowa Discussion, Alerts and Announcements
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of John Lovaas
Sent: Wednesday, June 28, 2006 3:15 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Looking for specifics on Iowa water testing rules

Hello all!

I'm looking for specific information regarding water testing(dye
tracing,=
 
specifically) regulations in Iowa that make non-agency testing
(i.e., 'private') inadmissible in court.

I'm looking for the rule #s, state codes, or court ruling info that
deals=
 
with this.

Feel free to contact me directly at [log in to unmask], or at 815-338-7518.

Thanks!

John Lovaas
Coldwater Cave Project
www.caves.org/project/coldwater 

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