Environmental Services Program
Chemical Analysis Section
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The Environmental Service Program's Chemical Analysis Section staffs the only State of Missouri Environmental Laboratory. The Chemical Analysis Section is the state's primary laboratory for drinking water chemistry and environmental chemistry, provides analytical testing and support vital in protecting Missouri’s residents and natural resources. This section provides analytical support for programs throughout the department and for other state agencies. Chemists and staff use their expertise and state of the art instruments to identify and confirm various contaminants, both natural and man-made. These contaminants include organic compounds, synthetic organic compounds, heavy metals and biological contaminants, which may affect health, water quality and natural resources. The Chemical Analysis Section provides the data necessary to evaluate and make decisions concerning the air and water quality in Missouri. In addition, the section also performs drinking water testing, which includes physical properties, metals, inorganic nonmetallic constituents, aggregate organic constituents and organic compounds.
Fiscal Year 2011 Accomplishments
- Performed chemical analysis on more than 25,100 samples which included more than 74,000 individual tests and 315,600 individual parameters (analytes). This analytical work included samples from the following agencies:
- Division of Environmental Quality: Air Pollution Control Program, Hazardous Waste Program, Solid Waste Management Program, Public Drinking Water Branch and Water Pollution Control Branch.
- Division of State Parks.
- Division of Geology and Land Survey.
- Missouri Department of Conservation.
- Missouri Department of Transportation.
- Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.
- Performed chemical analysis on 5,000 lead and copper samples for the Public Drinking Water Branch as part of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Lead and Copper Rule. This project required coordinating sample collection, sample container shipping and sample receipt performed during a three-month period during the summer; while the actual analysis took an additional three months to complete .
- Retained Envrionmental Protection Agency certification for drinking water chemical analyses as requested by the Public Drinking Water Branch as a requirement by the Envrionmental Protection Agency. This included participating in an annual proficiency testing study for each parameter from a certified proficiency testing provider .
- Continued work on the two-year project for the Water Pollution Control Branch using American Recovery and Reinvestment Act money. This project involved testing in several areas of the laboratory, including the wet chemistry unit. Work began in May 2010 and continued through September 2011.
- Continued to provide technical assistance to our department programs, other state agencies and other laboratories as needed. Such assistance is mostly provided by phone or e-mail and may concern clarification or understanding of a method used at the laboratory, or guidance concerning an acceptable Envrionmental Protection Agency analytical method.
- Continued to work toward implementing a new method for the Air Pollution Control Program. This new air filter testing method for lead particles in the air by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry included coordination and discussion with an Envrionmental Protection Agency development laboratory and the Air Pollution Control Program. Following this initial work, we began the implementation process of the actual method into our laboratory. Testing using this new method began with the July 2011 air filters.
- Purchased new water filtration systems for the Wet Laboratory, Metals Laboratory and Extractables Laboratory. These units purify tap water to make Type I and Type II laboratory water used for analytical testing in each laboratory. The Extractables Laboratory also purchased two additional extraction units, allowing greater through-put of samples during busy times. The filtration systems and extraction units were purchased using BASF™ settlement monies.
- Provided water sample results to clients and the public Monday through Friday through the department’s website at www.dnr.mo.gov/asp/esp/lims/select.asp.
- Continued to provide a laboratory certification program for drinking water and acting as the state’s primacy laboratory for chemical analysis. The laboratory certification program required our laboratory certification officers to make on-site audits at Missouri laboratories and to provide reciprocal certification for non-Missouri laboratories.
Missouri Laboratories Chain of Rocks, St. Louis – On-site FY2011 ALS Environmental Division City Utilities of Springfield American Water - Central Laboratory Howard Bend, St. Louis – On-site FY2011 Environmental Science Corporation Kansas City Water Services Fargo Cass Public Health Environmental Laboratory TestAmerica, St. Louis National Testing Laboratories Ltd. Pace Analytical Services Inc. PDC Laboratories Inc. Underwriters Laboratories Inc.
- Expedited sample analysis of drinking water, surface water, soil, and materials in order to provide data for priority health and environmental assessments from various sites including:
- Compass Plaza, Rogersville – Testing for Trichloroethene.
- City of St. Louis Police Department – TO-15 testing (Volatile testing from an evidence canister) used for a vehicular manslaughter case.
- Lee Chemical – On-going testing for the Hazardous Waste Program.
- Continued to use the early notification system for test results exceeding Environmental Protection Agency- defined maximum contaminant levels and action levels for all applicable drinking water analytes. This notification system is similar to the notification developed for reporting E. coli results exceeding established levels. These notifications are provided via e-mail to groups with direct responsibility for these analystes of interest. For example, benzene has an maximum contaminant level of 5 ug/L in drinking water. Therefore, if the Chemical Analysis Section management validates (passes managerial approval) a sample with a result that meets or exceeds 5 ug/L, an e-mail notification will be sent within 15 minutes to the Public Drinking Water Branch.
- Continued to use the Sample Condition Upon Receipt Anomaly Report to document issues with samples upon receipt at the laboratory. A copy of each report is sent to the appropriate project manager or regional office director and the Division of Environmental Quality administration in an effort to clarify issues that will better serve our customers.
Fiscal Year 2010 (FY2010) Accomplishments
Samples
Samples Analyzed Per Month, FY2010
Our measurements impact the public on a daily basis. Our day-to-day work may include analysis of the following:
- Groundwater.
- Surface Water.
- Drinking Water.
- Wastewater.
- Soil.
- Sediment.
- Indoor Air.
- Landfill Groundwater.
- Abandoned Drums.
- Unknown Materials.
- Hazardous Waste.
- Illegal Dumping.
- Laboratory Testing for Environmental Pollutants.
Instrumentation
The Chemical Analysis Section uses a wide variety of instruments to provide environmental chemistry data:
- Gas Chromatography.
- Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry.
- High Pressure Liquid Chromatography.
- Ion Chromatography.
- Inductively Coupled Plasma/Mass Spectrometry.
- Inductively Coupled Plasma/Optical Emission Spectroscopy.
- Total Organic Carbon.
- Lachat.
- Digiblock digestors.
- Turbovap concentrator.
- Heated/pressurized soxhlet extractor.
- Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure extractors.
- Millipore water filtration units.
- Infrared dryer.
- Turbidity system.
- Muffle furnace.
High Quality Analytical Results
The Chemical Analysis Section provides analysis of soil, water, sludge and air samples to help protect Missouri's residents and natural resources. Through analysis, staff identify and confirm the presence of natural and man-made pollutants. These pollutants may consist of volatile organic compounds such as petroleum products, biological contaminants found in wastewater discharges, heavy metals including lead and mercury or synthetic organic compounds consisting of pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs.
Complete List of Environmental Services Program-Chemical Analysis Section Analytical Capabilities
The State Environmental Laboratory is located at 2710 West Main Street in Jefferson City.