Lab Accreditation

Babcock Laboratories is Fully Approved for UCMR 5

A new cycle for the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR) is underway and Babcock Laboratories is ready to help our clients meet new testing demands. We are pleased to announce that Babcock has been selected by the USEPA to provide small systems support through a contract with the agency. In 2021 Babcock received full EPA approval to conduct UCMR 5 testing using EPA Methods 200.7, 533, and 537. Between these three testing methods, our lab can provide high quality analyses for all 30 compounds included in this year’s…

Wet Wipes Have More Than One Dirty Secret

From babies to kitchen counters, we’re all familiar with the dirty deeds carried out by sanitary wet wipes. When it comes to wreaking havoc on our sewer infrastructure, however, wet wipes have more than one dirty secret.

Babcock Labs is DoD AND California Accredited: PFAS Determinations in Non-Potable Water & Solids

On December 2, 2019, Babcock Laboratories, Inc. joined an elite group of laboratories in California accredited to analyze all PFAs by Department of Defense Quality Systems Manual (DoD QSM - version 5.1 or newer). On January 9th the CA Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (CA ELAP) added PFAS to Babcock Labs’ accreditation for analysis of Semi-volatile Organic Constituents in non-potable water—Field of Testing (FOT) 111. Babcock became one of a handful of laboratories in the State with the proper CA ELAP accreditation for PFAS required for all State regulatory work.

EPA Announces New Method to Test for Additional PFAS in Drinking Water

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced a new validated method for testing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water. Babcock Laboratories played a valuable role in the EPA’s validation study for Method 533 and is well-equipped to offer additional PFAS analyses to water agencies interested in a more comprehensive look into their source waters. 

Lab Accreditation: ELAP Publishes Proposed Regulations

On October 11th, 2019, the California Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP) published notice of its proposed regulations concerning the accreditation of environmental laboratories. The proposed regulations make changes to California’s state laboratory accreditation program and affect the requirements that the environmental testing laboratories must meet to analyze environmental samples for regulatory purposes in California. ELAP has called for the incorporation of the 2016 TNI Standard with two California-specific exceptions.

The Dog Days of Summer Proving Toxic to Pets

Harmful algal blooms made it into mainstream news this month following the death of dogs that reportedly that came into contact with the toxic blue-green algae that commonly grows in lakes and ponds during hot summer months.

The recent canine deaths and warning signs posted near water bodies from North Carolina to California demonstrate that current conditions are ideal for rapid cyanobacterial growth.