Guidelines Establishing Test Procedures for the Analysis of Pollutants and National Primary Drinking Water Regulations; Flexibility in Existing Test Procedures and Streamlined Proposal of New Test Procedures

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposes to streamline the process for EPA approval of analytical methods (and modifications thereof) under the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). The current methods approval process applies to and is used by public and private laboratories, manufacturers of analytical equipment and analysts who modify analytical methods or who develop new methods for use in compliance monitoring under the CWA and SDWA. The proposed rule only affects states if they choose to adopt the proposed streamlined process as part of their laboratory auditing programs. Under the streamlined methods approval system, EPA would increase the analyst's flexibility to modify existing test procedures, expedite approval of new and modified test procedures, establish and require the use of standardized quality control (QC) and QC acceptance criteria in existing and new test procedures, and recommend use of standard data elements for reporting test results. Today's action responds to the Administration's Environmental Technology and Reinventing Government Initiatives and the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act by promoting use of emerging technologies and encouraging participation of consensus standards organizations and other organizations in developing test procedures (analytical methods). The action proposed in today's rule would increase the options available to the regulated community in complying with EPA regulations under the CWA and SDWA. These actions are only an initial and interim step in the Agency's pursuit of a performance-based approach to environmental measurements, and are not meant to define or limit the Agency's ultimate implementation of a ``pure'' performance-based measurement system. The increased flexibility provided by this proposed action should significantly reduce the need for Agency review of alternate test procedures and make it easier for the analyst to select analytical methods that are most suited to specific regulatory measurement needs.