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manner (assuming we are not 

 operating at the limits of current 

 technology and need to make 

 measurements which physically 

 cannot be done): After defining an 

 initial hypothesis to clarify either a 

 particular unknown or source of 

 uncertainty, it would be necessary to 

 devise alternative hypotheses. The 

 next step would entail devising a 

 crucial experiment with alternative 

 possible outcomes, each of which will 

 exclude one or more of the hypotheses. 

 This is the basic idea behind the tiered 

 monitoring flow charts presented 

 below; an ideal evaluation scheme 

 would be a logical tree or framework 

 with branching points like a 

 conditional computer program, where 

 the next move depends on the result of 

 the last calculation. By carrying out 

 each individual experiment and 

 recycling the procedure, making 

 sequential hypotheses to refine the 

 possibilities that remain, one can 

 diagnose accurately where the "weak 

 link" in the initial logic structure really 

 exists. 



An Integrated, Tiered Approach to Monitoring and Management of Dredged Material Disposal Sites 



