HomeMy WebLinkAbout#5408 12-Final
INSPECTION REPORT ROUTING SHEET
To be attached to all inspection reports in-house only.
Laboratory Cert. #: 5408
Laboratory Name: Town of Franklinville
Inspection Type: Field Maintenance
Inspector Name(s): Jeffrey R. Adams
Inspection Date: October 30, 2012
Date Report Completed: November 2, 2012
Date Forwarded to Reviewer: November 2, 2012
Reviewed by: Jason Smith
Date Review Completed: November 5, 2012
Cover Letter to use: Insp. Initial Insp. Reg.
Insp. No Finding Insp. CP
Corrected
Unit Supervisor: Dana Satterwhite
Date Received: November 6, 2012
Date Forwarded to Linda: November 6, 2012
Date Mailed: November 6, 2012
_____________________________________________________________________
On-Site Inspection Report
LABORATORY NAME: Town of Franklinville
NPDES PERMIT #: NC0007820
ADDRESS: P.O. Box 277
Franklinville, NC 27248
CERTIFICATE #: 5408
DATE OF INSPECTION: October 30, 2012
TYPE OF INSPECTION: Field Maintenance
AUDITOR(S): Jeffrey R. Adams
LOCAL PERSON(S) CONTACTED: Arnold Allred
I. INTRODUCTION:
This laboratory was inspected by a representative of the North Carolina Wastewater/Groundwater Laboratory
Certification (NC WW/GW LC) program to verify its compliance with the requirements of 15A NCAC 2H .0800
for the analysis of environmental samples.
II. GENERAL COMMENTS:
The laboratory was clean and well organized. Records were filed in an orderly manner and readily available for
review.
The laboratory was given a packet containing North Carolina Laboratory Certification approved procedures,
quality control requirements and policies during the inspection.
Contracted analyses are performed by Meritech, Inc. (Certification #165).
The requirement associated with Finding A is a new policy that has been implemented by our program
since the last inspection.
III. FINDINGS, REQUIREMENTS, COMMENTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS:
Traceability
A. Finding: The laboratory needs to increase the documentation of purchased materials and
reagents (i.e., pH buffers).
Requirement: All chemicals, reagents, standards and consumables used by the laboratory must
have the following information documented: Date Received, Date Opened (in use), Vendor, Lot
Number, and Expiration Date. A system (e.g., traceable identifiers) must be in place that links
standard/reagent preparation information to analytical batches in which the solutions are used.
Documentation of solution preparation must include the analyst’s initials, date of preparation, the
volume or weight of standard(s) used, the solvent and final volume of the solution. This information
as well as the vendor and/or manufacturer, lot number, and expiration date must be retained for
chemicals, reagents, standards and consumables used for a period of five years. Consumable
materials such as pH buffers and lots of pre-made standards are included in this requirement. Ref:
Quality Assurance Policies for Field Laboratories.
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#5408 Town of Franklinville
pH – Standard Methods, 4500 H B-2000
B. Finding: The laboratory is not documenting the calibration time on the benchsheet.
Requirement: The following must be documented whenever sample analysis is performed: Time of
calibration. Ref: NC WW/GW LC Approved Procedure for the Field Analysis of pH.
pH – Standard Methods, 4500 H B - 2000
Temperature – Standard Methods, 2550 B - 2000
C. Finding: The proper units of measure (i.e., S.U. for pH and ºC for temperature) are not documented
on the benchsheet.
Requirement: Data pertinent to each analysis must be maintained for five years. Certified Data
must consist of date collected, time collected, sample site, sample collector, and sample analysis
time. The field bench sheets must provide a space for the signature or initials of the analyst, and
proper units of measure for all analyses. Ref: 15A NCAC 02H .0805 (g) (1).
IV. PAPER TRAIL INVESTIGATION:
The paper trail consisted of comparing field testing records and contract lab reports to Discharge Monitoring
Reports (DMRs) submitted to the North Carolina Division of Water Quality. Data were reviewed for the
Town of Franklinville WWTP (NPDES permit #NC0007820) for July, August and September, 2012. The
following error was detected:
Date Parameter Location Value on Benchsheet
*Contract Data
Value on DMR
7/24/12 Total Suspended Solids Effluent *<2.5 mg/L 2.5 mg/L
When calculating an arithmetic mean, you may consider a "less than" value as equal to zero.
Therefore, if all monthly values are “less than” values, the monthly arithmetic average would be “zero”.
When calculating a geometric mean, you may consider a "less than" value as equal to one. Therefore,
if all monthly values are “less than” values, the monthly geometric average would be “one”. This
procedure pertains only to the calculation of an average. You must report individual data values on the
DMR exactly as reported to you by your laboratory. Please see the attached documents (i.e., NC DWQ
NPDES Permitting Guidance for DMR Calculations and Directions for Completing Monthly Discharge
Monitoring Reports) for additional guidance.
In order to avoid questions of legality, it is recommended that you contact the appropriate Regional
Office for guidance as to whether an amended Discharge Monitoring Report will be required. A copy of
this report will be made available to the Regional Office.
V. CONCLUSIONS:
Correcting the above-cited finding will help this lab to produce quality data and meet certification
requirements. The inspector would like to thank the staff for its assistance during the inspection and data
review process. Please respond to all findings.
Report prepared by: Jeffrey R. Adams Date: November 2, 2012
Report reviewed by: Jason Smith Date: November 5, 2012