Canadian Association For Environmental Analytical Laboratories Inc. (CAEAL) |
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M O E, S C C a n d C A E A L A g r e e m e n t
Agreement for the Accreditation of Laboratories Conducting Analyses of Ontario Drinking Water
- MOE/SCC/CAEAL Continuation Agreement (effective January 2005)
- MOE/SCC/CAEAL Agreement
- CAEAL/SCC Press Release
- MOE Press Release
- Backgrounder
- Ontario Drinking Water Acts, Regulations and Protocols
- Letter to Laboratories: Release of Information
- Letter to CAEAL Assessors
MOE/SCC/CAEAL Agreement
DOWNLOAD NOW: "Agrreement for the Accreditation of Laboratories Conducting Analyses of Ontario Drinking Water" (.pdf)
http://www.ene.gov.on.ca/envision/news/2003/072501.htm
- This Agreement is established as a result of Ontario's Safe Drinking Water Act, which became law in December 2002. It allows the government to integrate the laboratory accreditation process with the Ministry of Environment's new licencing requirement and implements other recommendations from the Walkerton Report.
- The SCC/CAEAL program will accredit test methods specified by the government, and laboratory audit information will now be released to the Ontario government.
- The program will also attempt to provide check-samples for all drinking water tests specified by the Ontario government.
- Shortly after the Walkerton disaster, the Ontario Government made it mandatory for laboratories to become accredited if they were going to check Ontario drinking water.
- The laboratory accreditation program for drinking water laboratories in Canada is operated jointly by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) and the Canadian Association for Environmental Analytical Laboratories (CAEAL). About 130 Canadian labs are accredited for various environmental tests (based on ISO/IEC 17025), and about 70 of them are conducting tests on Ontario water.
- In the Report of the Walkerton Inquiry, Justice O'Connor indicated that he was impressed by the thoroughness of the accreditation process and recommended that all drinking water testing should be done at accredited facilities.
- CAEAL organizes the laboratory audits by teams of experts, mostly from government labs, who are trained on the requirements of the international standard. Inter-laboratory check samples are also used twice a year to verify ongoing proficiency at the laboratory.
- The entire SCC accreditation program (PALCAN) encompasses over 350 laboratories. It has been reviewed by various international organizations and is formally recognized by the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation, the principal organization for global recognition of test facility competence.
Please see the Ontario section of our "Provincial Regulations Page".
DOWNLOAD NOW: "NEWSLETTER: CAEAL Release of Drinking Water Accreditation Information to the Ontario Ministry of Environment" (.pdf)
DOWNLOAD NOW: "Assessing Drinking Water Testing Laboratories in Ontario" (.pdf)