COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA
Department of Environmental Protection
Commonwealth News Bureau
Room 308, Capitol
Harrisburg, PA 17120
CONTACT: Brandi Hunter
Phone: (717) 787-1323
Harrisburg, PA – October 2, 2003
Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Deputy Secretary of Field Operations Eric Conrad today announced the revocation of Blue Marsh Laboratories Inc.?s accreditation in chemistry after its failure to meet state laboratory standards for drinking water monitoring.
Blue Marsh Laboratories, 1605 Benjamin Franklin Highway, Douglasville, had their certificate of accreditation revoked after failing to correct deviations that were noted during a March 2003 site visit. The March 2003 visit revealed deviations that were cited in previous visits by DEP representatives. Blue Marsh Laboratories had represented to the department that the deviations had been corrected. These representations were determined to be inaccurate.
?The findings of the inspection and the subsequent review raise doubts about the reliability of the analytical results on drinking water samples that would be produced by this laboratory,? Deputy Secretary Conrad said. ?Required laboratory procedures must be followed to ensure the results reported by environmental laboratories accurately reflect the quality of the drinking water.?
Quality control samples were not analyzed at the required frequency and/or concentrations while others were omitted entirely. Additional probing revealed instances where the laboratory failed to adequately demonstrate their capability to perform some analyses before analyzing and reporting samples to the DEP. Further findings noted that the laboratory?s written standard operating procedures do not reflect current laboratory practices and are inconsistent with the required procedures and practices.
DEP?s evaluation for certification included consideration of facilities, personnel, equipment, methodology, quality assurance and performance. This action is part of an ongoing effort by DEP?s Laboratory Accreditation Program to review the performance of laboratories certified to analyze public drinking water throughout the Commonwealth.
Blue Marsh Laboratories may regain chemistry certification by submitting a completed application for certification in Chemistry, providing satisfactory responses to the deviations noted in the reports, and by demonstrating the ability to produce valid data.
?We will continue to work with laboratories to improve the quality of data that DEP uses to make decisions that affect public health and the environment,? Deputy Secretary Conrad said. ?Laboratories that fail to meet the standards for producing quality data leave us with no option except to take an enforcement action. We will continue to work to ensure that all necessary procedures are followed to guarantee the well being of our citizens.?
Pennsylvania?s Safe Drinking Water Act requires that public water systems periodically test samples in a state-certified laboratory and submit the results to DEP to validate compliance with drinking water standards. The population and type of facilities served by a public water system determine the frequency and types of testing required.
There are four categories in which public drinking water systems are tested in this state: microbiology, radiochemistry, organic chemistry and inorganic chemistry. Laboratories are required to be certified for each individual subcategory of analysis.
For more information, visit the department?s Web site at Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
