NEWS SOCIETY

Uniform accreditation standards for environmental labs advance at NELAC meeting After approving a constitution and the major provisions of three standards at its annual meeting, the National Environmental Lab­oratory Accreditation Conference (NELAC), a voluntary association of state and federal officials, moved closer to its goal of devel­oping national performance stan­dards for environmental laborato­ries. Once finalized, the standards will make it easier for laboratories to operate across state lines, im­prove data quality, and reduce the oversight responsibilities of state regulators.

Establishing the conference was first discussed in 1990, when laboratory owners and regulators agreed that the lack of uniform collection, testing, and analytical protocol led to uneven data qual­ity. The call for national standards "was a bold and very necessary step" taken by the private sector and the states, said NELAC Exec­utive Secretary Ted Coopwood. The group comprises regulators, state and U.S. territory represen­tatives officials from seven fed­eral agencies and nonvoting pri­vate sector labs and consultants Coopwood said

At the second annual meeting in Washington, D.C., in late July, NELAC members approved par­tial standards governing on-site assessment, quality systems, and the accreditation process for the labs, according to NELAC Direc­tor Jeanne Mourrain. More con­troversial sections of the stan­dards were withdrawn for revision and a vote later this year. "There wasn't anything that couldn't be worked out," Mourrain said.

Included in the on-site assess­ment standard is a description of the essential elements of an as­sessment and the qualifications for on-site inspectors. For exam­ple, on-site assessments of ac­credited laboratories must be done every two years. If a defi­ciency is discovered, follow-up assessments are required.

ISO 25 standards, which have been accepted by the European

community for laboratory accred­itation, have been incorporated, witri some revisions, into trie quality systems standard ap­proved by NELAC, said Mourrain.

NELAC also agreed, in general,

on the process for lab accredita­tion. To receive accreditation, each lab must complete an appli­cation tailored to meet the spe­cific state regulatory require­ments needed for accreditation within that state.

Three standards were tabled for future consideration, Mourrain said—one each on the proficiency testing program, program policy and structure, and standards for the accrediting authorities.

The three-day meeting had a healthy representation from 46 states. Although the standard-voting process went smoothly, at least one issue remains unre­solved. Several private sector companies have pushed for the authority to act as a third-party accreditation body. But NELAC voted against this, agreeing by a large margin that accreditation power should remain with the government. Still, NELAC said, the companies can work as contractors to the regulators by performing on-site assessments. The private sector firms do not want to be left out of the accredi­tation process so a subcommit-

NELAC's governing board has been established to discuss an expanded role for the private sector

NELAC will hold an interim meeting this winter. —CATHERINE M. COONEY

Lawsuit urges action on U.S. "Great Waters" Three environmental groups have sued EPA for failing to determine whether new emissions controls are required to protect the na­tion's "Great Waters."

In a suit filed July 18 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, the Sierra Club, the National Wildlife Federation, and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation charged that EPA has failed to protect the ecosystems of the Great Lakes, the Chesapeake Bay, Lake Champlain, and certain coastal waters, by not implement­ing provisions in the Clean Air Act.

Numerous studies have shown that pollutants including dioxin, mercury, and polychlorinated bi-phenyls (PCBs), can travel great distances, persist in the environ­ment, and bioaccumulate. The Clean Air Act requires that by

1993, EPA report on any studies of air pollution's effects on the Great Waters and determine if the act's provisions adequately pro­tect human health and the wa­ters. If not, EPA should recom­mend new emissions controls.

In 1994 EPA submitted its first report to Congress. Because "un­certainties in current information are significant," the agency de­clined to address whether the act's toxic air pollution control provisions provide adequate pro­tection, the report said.

Although the agency is work­ing on its second report on the Great Waters, agency researchers warn that there are still wide data gaps, including a lack of informa­tion identifying the origin of the deposition. —CATHERINE M. COONEY

NELAC achievements The National Environmental Labo­ratory Accreditation Conference agreed to almost 70% of three standards designed to establish uniformity among environmental laboratory procedures. Highlights of its second annual meeting include:

• Approval of new constitution and conference bylaws • Approval of partial standards covering on-site assessments, quality systems, and the accredi­tation process for the laboratories • Charles Borkopp, Utah Depart­ment of Health, elected as the new conference chair • Subcommittee established to review the accreditation role of the private sector

VOL. 30, NO. 9, 1996 / ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY / NEWS • 3 8 7 A