To serve as a British Columbia’s Qualified Laboratory, the NALS participates in three Proficiency Testing Programs on a regular basis, as follows:

• Industrial Hygiene Proficiency Analytical Testing (IHPAT) Program
• Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) Proficiency Testing Program
• Clinical Microbiology Proficiency Testing (CMPT) Program

The list of parameters being assessed through the above-mentioned proficiency testing programs are as follows:

ECCC (Water Testing):

1. Major Ions and Nutrients in Natural Waters (MI):

• Dissolved Inorganic Carbon
• Dissolved Organic Carbon
• Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen
• Nitrite + Nitrate
• Total Nitrogen
• Ammonia
• Total Alkalinity
• Total Hardness
• Conductivity
• Color
• pH
• Boron
• Calcium
• Chloride
• Fluoride
• Magnesium
• Potassium
• Sodium
• Sulfate

2. Trace Elements in Waters (TE):

• Aluminum
• Antimony
• Arsenic
• Barium
• Boron
• Cadmium
• Chromium
• Cobalt
• Copper
• Iron
• Lead
• Manganese
• Molybdenum
• Nickel
• Selenium
• Tin
• Vanadium
• Zinc

3. Total Phosphorous in Water (TP)

4. Turbidity in Water (TU)

AIHA (Air Filters/Industrial Hygiene):

1. Airborne Particulates (Gravimetric NIOSH_0500 Method)

2. Heavy Metals (Cd, Pb, Cr, Ni, Mn) in Air Filters (NIOSH 7303 Method)

CMPT (Water Microbiology):

1. Total Coliforms and E-coli