FINAL BILL REPORT

SHB 644

                                  C 481 L 87

BYHouse Committee on Environmental Affairs (originally sponsored by Representatives Rust, Allen, May, Hine, Unsoeld, Valle and Rasmussen; by request of Puget Sound Water Quality Authority)

Authorizing the department of ecology to certify testing laboratories for departmental submittals.

House Committe on Environmental Affairs

Senate Committee on Parks & Ecology

SYNOPSIS AS ENACTED

BACKGROUND:

Laboratory analyses are often required by federal, state or local water quality laws. The Department of Ecology and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rely on these results to determine whether the law and associated permit requirements are being followed, and whether enforcement action is necessary.  The Department of Social and Health Services relies on results of analyses of water quality and shellfish tissues to be sure that fecal coliform levels are within specific levels designed to protect human health.  Laboratory analyses are also conducted to establish trends and to answer specific questions.

Procedures for the collection and analysis of environmental samples are not currently standardized.  Quality control and quality assurance procedures are generally lacking.  In cases where they do exist, there is no way to determine whether or not they are followed.  Thus, laboratory results are not always reliable.  Some entities use their own laboratories to test their effluent, and each one may have a slightly different procedure.  This results in data bases that are not comparable.  Agencies with large ambient monitoring programs also lack comparable data from year to year.  This makes it difficult to determine trends or toxicant levels in a specific body of water.

SUMMARY:

The Department of Ecology is authorized to certify laboratories that submit data to the department.  Fees for certification may be charged to cover the department's costs. The certification may consider:  1) evaluation of procedures; 2) determination of the accuracy of test results; 3) certification of laboratories based on prior certification by another state; and 4) other appropriate factors.  The department may require any person submitting data to use a laboratory certified by either the department or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  The maximum fee that can be charged to persons who:  1) have a federal permit; 2) operate a lab solely for their own use; and 3) require certification solely for conventional pollutants, is $4,000, or the actual cost of providing certification, whichever is less.

Persons who have state or federal wastewater discharge permits will not be charged a fee before September 30, 1988.  The Department of Ecology may not duplicate federal requirements.

Labs owned by persons holding wastewater permits and operated solely for their own use and that participate in federal quality assurance programs are exempt from certain certification and fee requirements.

VOTES ON FINAL PASSAGE:

      House 94   3

      Senate    47     1(Senate amended)

      House 97   0(House concurred)

EFFECTIVE:July 26, 1987