Environmental Team earns tissue testing accreditation
Environmental Team earns tissue testing accreditation
Environmental NEWS - Fall 2008
Environmental Team earns tissue testing accreditation
Determining the levels of pollutants in plant and animal tissues presents a unique challenge for testing laboratories because there are a wide variety of matrices to be analyzed. Despite the difficulty of the testing, there are only a few government agencies that are accrediting laboratories to analyze biological tissues. The Texas Commission for Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is one of those agencies, and Lancaster Laboratories recently earned their approval to perform tissue testing.
Chemist Deb Krady analyzes fish tissue samples
for trace concentrations of metals by ICP/MS.
The scope of the accreditation includes volatiles by EPA method 8260, semi-volatile organics by EPA method 8270, pesticides and PCBs by EPA methods 8081 and 8082 and selected metals using EPA methods 6010, 6020 and 7471. “This accreditation is a direct NELAC accreditation, so it may be accepted in states other than Texas,” according to Amy Doupe, who coordinates certifications for Lancaster Laboratories.
She also noted that Lancaster Labs is expanding the scope of its accreditation in other areas, too. “The Method Update Rule that USEPA passed last year allows us greater flexibility to use alternate test procedures, so we’re running proficiency test samples to demonstrate our ability to achieve accurate results with some newer testing technologies. The use of microdistillation for cyanide analysis is one example of that,” she says. Accreditations covering additional test methods using the discrete analyzer for nitrate/nitrite and phenols were recently added, as well.
For additional information on Lancaster Labs’ accreditations, visit www.lancasterlabs.com or call Environmental Client Services at 717-656-2300.