Sediments
Contact UsProgrammatic Support for Sediment Testing
Sediment can be a repository and potential reservoir for persistent and bioaccumulative organic and inorganic contaminants. Many of these contaminants can biomagnify in the food chain and may have a significant ecological and human health risk effect.
Sediment management decisions are often made within a complex regulatory arena. No single government agency is completely responsible for addressing the problem of contaminated sediments. More than 10 independent federal laws provide authority to address sediment quality issues to EPA, US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and other federal, state and tribal agencies.
How Can Eurofins Environment Testing Help You With Sediment Testing?
Sites vary in their size and complexity. Our experience has proven that to successfully provide sediment testing support, projects require detailed pre-project scope definition, planning and execution. Sediment sites often involve more than one medium, including surface water, tissues, pore water, groundwater, and soils. These sites potentially involve multiple contaminants of concern from a variety of sources, geographic areas and ecological settings. Eurofins Environment Testing’s sediment program standards identify systematic laboratory procedures that address the complexities and challenges associated with sediment projects. These standards provide the technical framework for our sediment laboratories to deliver the highest levels of scientific and service performance in the environmental testing industry.
Eurofins Environment Testing has extensive experience providing chemical and physical testing services in support of sediment projects nationwide. These projects have been executed within various US EPA Regions, USACE Districts, as well as under various state and local governmental agencies. Guided by industry leading expertise and unmatched laboratory capacity, Eurofins Environment Testing’s goal is to generate analytical data that meets project specific data quality objectives, thereby facilitating appropriate sediment management decisions.
To access our comprehensive sediment, tissue and dredged material brochure, please click here.
There are many challenges that our customers may face when working with sediment samples. Many of those challenges, as well as the impact on the data and Eurofins Environment Testing's proposed solutions, are outlined in the table below.
|
Testing Challenges |
Potential Sediment Project Impact |
Eurofins Environment Testing’s Solutions |
|
High moisture content of whole sediment samples |
Elevated reporting limits, potentially exceeding project target limits when results are dry weight corrected |
Programmatic strategies for mitigating impact of high moisture on reporting limits |
|
Limited sample volume and/or mass |
Increased sampling costs or elevated reporting limits due to limited sample size |
Analytical modifications that compensate for small sample volume/mass resulting in lower levels of detection |
|
Complex matrix interferences, including target and non-target compounds of concern |
Elevated reporting limits, potentially exceeding project target limit requirements due to sample dilutions |
Project specific sample organic extract cleanup strategies reducing both target and non-target interferences |
|
Ultra-low reporting limits required to meet regulatory or risk-based criteria |
Data not meeting project targeted reporting limits |
A continuum of analytical procedures from routine to ultra-low sensitivity for a wide variety of contaminants of concern |
|
Non-routine contaminants of concern required to meet project objectives |
Incomplete data set or qualitative data provided based on tentative identification of compounds utilizing a library search |
Expanded compound lists as part of standard analytical method utilizing traditional analytical approaches, such as GC with various detectors and GCMS |
|
Emerging contaminants of concern requiring non-traditional testing |
Incomplete data set, avoidable cost, delays and reporting issues associated with subcontracting of analytical services |
In-house support of emerging contaminants of interest utilizing specialized analytical approaches LC/MS/MS and HRGC/HRMS |
|
Compressed, logistically challenging sampling campaigns |
Sampling schedules and budgets compromised |
Unmatched program capacity with strategically nationwide Eurofins Environment Testing Sediment Laboratories |
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