Geochemical analyses of soils and sediments, Coeur d'Alène drainage basin, Idaho: Sampling, analytical methods, and results.

This report presents the results of over 1100 geochemical
analyses of samples of soil and sediment from the Coeur d'Alène
(CdA) drainage basin in northern Idaho. The location
(in 3 dimensions) and a lithological description of each sample
is included with the laboratory analytical data. Methods of
sample location, collection, preparation, digestion and
geochemical analysis are described. Five different
laboratories contributed geochemical data for this report
and the quality control procedures used by each laboratory
are described. Comparison of the analytical accuracy and
precision of each laboratory is given by comparing analyses
of standard reference materials and of splits of CdA samples.
These geochemical data are presented in seven MS Excel tables
and seven dBase4 tables. The seven dBase4 files allow users to
more easily import these geochemical data into a GIS. Only one of
these seven tables includes geospatial data AppendixB. However, in
AppendixB there is a Site ID column that will allow users to link
or join the matching Site Id columns in the six associated
lithologic and geochemical tables.
Due to format constraints of dBase4, the column names (headers)
had to be modified to a maximum of only ten ASCII characters.
As a result, some of the dBase4 column header names can be
rather cryptic. To assist dBase files users, this ten digit
dBase4 column name is also found directly under the more
descriptive column names found in the MS Excel tables packaged
with this report. Additional formatting requirements such as
changing the “below detection limit” symbol (<) to a negative
symbol (-) were used to accurately display the data the dBase4
format.