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Home My WebLink About#5286-final INSPECTION REPORT ROUTING SHEET To be attached to all inspection reports in-house only. Laboratory Cert. #: 5286 Laboratory Name: Town of Pantego Inspection Type: Field Maintenance Inspector Name(s): Todd Crawford Inspection Date: April 19, 2010 Date Report Completed: April 20, 2010 Date Forwarded to Reviewer: April 20, 2010 Reviewed by: Jason Smith Date Review Completed: April 23, 2010 Cover Letter to use: Insp. Initial x Insp. Reg. Insp. No Finding Insp. CP Unit Supervisor: Dana Satterwhite Date Received: April 26, 2010 Date Forwarded to Alberta: April 28, 2010 Date Mailed: April 28, 2010 _____________________________________________________________________ On-Site Inspection Report LABORATORY NAME: Town of Pantego PERMIT #: NC0036919 ADDRESS: P.O. Box 1 Pantego, NC 27860 CERTIFICATE #: 5286 DATE OF INSPECTION: April 19, 2010 TYPE OF INSPECTION: Field Maintenance AUDITOR(S): Todd Crawford LOCAL PERSON(S) CONTACTED: Maxville O’Neal I. INTRODUCTION: This laboratory was inspected to verify its compliance with the requirements of 15A NCAC 2H .0800 for the analysis of environmental samples. II. GENERAL COMMENTS: The lab was clean and well organized. All equipment necessary to perform the certified parameters were present and appeared well maintained. A description of current field lab policies and technical assistance documents for the analysis of the facility’s currently certified parameters were provided at the time of the inspection. Requirements associated with Finding B are new since the last inspection. III. FINDINGS, REQUIREMENTS, COMMENTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: Temperature – Standard Methods, 18th Edition, 2550 B pH – Standard Methods, 18th Edition, 4500 H+ B Dissolved Oxygen – Standard Methods, 18th Edition, 4500 O G Quality Control A. Finding: The NIST traceable digital thermometer used to take temperature measurements and to verify the temperature sensors on the pH and DO meters was due for calibration on April 25, 2009. Requirement: NIST traceable thermometers used for temperature measurement must be recalibrated in accordance with manufacturer’s recalibration date. If no date is given, the NIST traceable thermometer must be recalibrated annually. Ref: Technical Assistance for Field Analysis of Temperature. Page 2 #5286 Town of Pantego Requirement: All temperature sensing devices on meters must be calibrated against a NIST certified or NIST traceable thermometer annually (every 12 months) and proper corrections made and documented. The meter reading must be less than 1ºC from the NIST certified reading to be acceptable. Document the serial number and manufacturer of the NIST thermometer that was used in the comparison. Document any correction that applies (even if zero) on both the meter and on a separate sheet to be filed. Ref: Technical Assistance for Field Analysis of Temperature. Ref: Technical Assistance for Field Analysis of Dissolved Oxygen. Ref: Technical Assistance for Field Analysis of pH. Requirement: Obtain a NIST traceable thermometer with a current calibration certificate and repeat the temperature sensor checks on the DO and pH meters. Send documentation with your response. Documentation B. Finding: Preparation and/or purchase of standards, reagents and consumables are not being documented in such a way as to provide traceability. 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: North Carolina Wastewater/Groundwater Laboratory Certification document, Quality Assurance Policies for Field Laboratories. C. Finding: The analysis of performance testing samples is not being documented on the laboratory benchsheets. Requirement: The analysis of performance testing (PT) samples is designed to evaluate the entire process used to routinely report environmental analytical results. Therefore, PT samples must be analyzed in the same manner as environmental samples. Ref: North Carolina Wastewater/Groundwater Laboratory Certification document, Quality Assurance Policies for Field Laboratories. D. Finding: Error corrections are not performed properly. Requirement: All documentation errors must be corrected by drawing a single line through the error so that the original entry remains legible. Entries shall not be obliterated by erasures or markings. Wite-Out®, correction tape or similar products designed to obliterate documentation are not to be used. Write the correction adjacent to the error. The correction must be initialed by the responsible individual and the date of change documented. All data and log entries must be written in indelible ink. Pencil entries are not acceptable. Ref: North Carolina Wastewater/Groundwater Laboratory Certification Policy. Page 2 #5286 Town of Pantego pH – Standard Methods, 18th Edition, 4500 H+ B E. Finding: The check buffer analysis result is only being recorded as a whole number. Requirement: In addition to the calibration standards, the meter must be verified with a third calibration standard, or check buffer, (e.g., pH 7 buffer). The check buffer must read within a range of pH 6.9 to 7.1 to be acceptable. Ref: Technical Assistance for Field Analysis of pH. Requirement: A variance of ±0.1 pH unit represents the limit of accuracy under normal conditions, especially for measurement of water and poorly buffered solutions. For this reason, report pH values to the nearest 0.1 pH unit. Ref: Standard Methods, 18th Edition, 4500 H+ B. (6). 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 permit # NC0036919 for January, February and March, 2010. The following errors were noted: Date Parameter Location Value on Benchsheet or Contract Report Value on DMR 01/28/10 pH Effluent 8.3 S.U. 7.1 S.U. 01/29/10 Dissolved Oxygen Effluent Missing 8.3 mg/L 02/04/10 BOD Effluent <2.0 mg/L <2.1 mg/L Total Suspended Residue results for the both the Influent and Effluent are being reported on the DMR. The column heading containing the Influent results does not identify the sample as being from the Influent. 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 forwarded to the Regional Office. V. CONCLUSIONS: Correcting the above-cited findings 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 subsequent data review process. Please respond to all findings. Report prepared by: Todd Crawford Date: April 20, 2010 Report reviewed by: Jason Smith Date: April 23, 2010