NARS Data Extraction Tool Shiny App

The National Aquatic Resource Surveys (NARS) historically used paper forms to collect field data, which took months to process. NARS then switched to using mobile apps to allow field crews to collect data using an iPad, rather than paper forms. To submit data from the mobile app, crews email a set of JSON files from the iPad to NARS Information Management (NARS IM). Initially, crews received back from NARS IM a PDF file of the paper field forms with the submitted data filled in. However, over time, the mobile app diverged from the original paper forms, and maintaining the ability to provide PDF forms to crews was not practical. As an alternative to this approach, an application was developed using R Shiny code to allow crews to reformat the data files that were submitted from iPads into a readable format for their own review and use. The JSON files are accessible to crews either by copying the submission email to a separate email address of their choice or accessed from their Sent email folder. These JSON files can be then be uploaded into the R Shiny app to parse the JSON files into more recognizable data in flat file format. Different types of data are saved into separate comma-delimited files or worksheets within a single Excel workbook. In addition, a basic field visit summary can be produced from uploaded files and saved as HTML format to provide to landowners or for their own files. This Shiny app is available to the public via the EPA’s cloud environment, so the user does not need to have access to R to use it.

Impact/Purpose

Field crews that collect data for the National Aquatic Resource Surveys (NARS) use a mobile app developed for use on iPads. To submit the data to NARS Information Management (IM), where data are stored, an email with the data in the form of .JSON files (one for each form in the app) is sent to a central EPA NARS IM email address. Most field crews split the work between two iPads, so no single iPad contains all the data for a site. Though crews can still view the data in the mobile app after submission, many expressed an interest in being able to examine the data for the whole site visit in a spreadsheet format, because multiple iPads are typically used the collect the data from a single site visit. The NARS Data Extraction Tool is a publicly accessible web application developed using R Shiny code to allow NARS field crews to extract and save the data they have submitted from a NARS mobile application. It also allows the user to create a simple summary of field activities that can be provided to landowners after sampling.

Citation

Blocksom, K. NARS Data Extraction Tool Shiny App. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, 2021.

• NARS Data Extraction Tool Shiny App