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Procedures for Detection and Quantitation

Technical Workgroup

Federal Advisory Committee on Detection and Quantitation Approaches and Uses in Clean Water Act (CWA) Programs

Summary of Technical Work Group Conference Call #33
June 21, 2006
1:00 – 3:00 p.m. EST

The Technical Work Group's regularly scheduled call was held on Wednesday, June 21 from 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m., EDT. The call-in number is 866 299-3188 and the participant code is 202 566 1045#.

The schedule of future Technical Work Group conference calls is:

Action Items

Technical Work Group members will:

Triangle will:

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Welcome and Introductions

At 1:00 p.m., Bob Wheeler, facilitator, welcomed participants to the call, conducted a roll call of Technical Work Group members and observers, and briefly reviewed the agenda for the meeting. Mr. Wheeler confirmed with everyone that they received the documents distributed in the meeting emails.

He noted that the primary purpose of today's meeting was to finalize documents that will be included in the package for upcoming distribution to the FACDQ. Today's session will seek the approval of the Features document in order to include it in the submittal to the FACDQ.

The Agenda order was changed to accommodate members' schedules so that priority items were addressed first.

Meeting Summaries for Meetings #27, #28, #29, #30 and #31

Review and approval of the meeting summaries was tabled at the June 9 session for action at the June 21 meeting. There were no changes to the documents, and all were approved.

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Review and Approve Features of the Pilot Study Document

Mr. Wheeler noted that the intention is to send the Features document with the FACDQ email distribution no later than Friday, June 23. He noted that changes came forward from TWG members since the last meeting, and those revisions were captured in the latest version of the document. Mr. Wheeler referred everyone to page 2 and noted the addition of a summary section that was added for clarity about what the Pilot Design Study does not do.

Following discussion, it was agreed by consensus that the document, as revised, could go forward to the FACDQ. Any issues that remain will be a part of the discussions with the committee at its July 13-14, 2006 meeting.

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Review Additions to the Glossary of Terms

Derek Van Marter referred everyone to his email of June 19 regarding the definitions for interlab and intralab. As a reminder, Mr. Van Marter noted that the terms were not defined in the glossary and that the definitions provided originated from the Pilot Study Design that was approved by the Technical Work Group.

Discussion ensued about how best to define the two terms. No consensus was reached on adding these two definitions. It is expected to be resolved at the July 5th Technical Work Group meeting. It was also agreed that a revised, updated Glossary will be distributed in hard-copy at the July 13-14, 2006 FACDQ meeting.

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Approach to Normalizing the Matrix

Mr. Wheeler reminded everyone that the FACDQ had asked that this be done only if there were time to do it. He suggested that the group consider normalizing the matrix in the time frame from July 2006 to March 2007. The group supported the suggestion.

Discuss FACDQ Meeting Presentation and "Meet and Greet" Session Approaches

Mr. Wheeler discussed the July FACDQ agenda with the group. He noted that there will be a "meet and greet" session at 6:00 p.m. on July 12 with the FACDQ. Members of the study design team who met in Denver last March were encouraged to attend and be active in leading informal discussions. The location for the event is somewhere in the FDIC building. As a reminder, this is a social event and attendees should be cognizant of FACDQ rules. Discussions are to be informal dialogues.

Jim Pletl presents "What We Need a Procedure to Do" at 10:10 AM on July 13. At 10:45 AM, the committee will consider ratification of the Pilot Study Design. Ken Miller will present the calculations/analysis information.

Following today's meeting and before the next session July 5, Mr. Wheeler encouraged TWG members to discuss what guidance the TWG needs from the FACDQ and to determine what questions they may have.

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Next Meetings: Conference Call Schedule

The next call is scheduled for July 5, 2006 at 1:00 PM EDT. It was agreed that a shorter meeting would be sufficient to finalize definitions for the revised glossary of terms, finalize Technical Work Group presentations for the July FACDQ meeting.

Mr. Wheeler suggested that the group schedule a few meetings out following the July FACDQ meeting. Items to cover in those sessions include recommendations to the committee on a final procedure, normalizing the matrix, work on the data analysis, and updates on what is happening with the Pilot Design Study. The group agreed to a call schedule that begins August 2 and follows an every-other-Wednesday schedule at the usual 1:00 PM time (EDT). An email will be sent with the schedule of calls.

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Status Update from EPA

Dick Reding reported that he sent a list of laboratories regarding the bidding solicitation. The deadline for response is June 30, 2006. The solicitation documents were distributed to well over fifty laboratories, and he already has received some responses. When the bids are returned, EPA will be able to tell the Technical Work Group what laboratories want to participate and what methods they propose. Data collection will begin September 5, 2006. He reminded everyone that there is a lot of work to do before that date and that FACDQ guidance from the July meeting is needed.

Mr. Reding noted that the Office of Research and Development (ORD) is conducting its review and will have some ideas on how to interpret and evaluate the data, along with other recommendations. The week of June 26 he will be in North Carolina attending the ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) meeting.

A question arose as to how the Technical Work Group should interface with ORD. It was suggested that ORD members be included in the conference calls as observers where they could provide ideas and input. Information from ORD will be prepared in writing to assist in preparation for the calls.

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Public Comment

Mr. Wheeler asked if there was any public comment. Hearing none, the public comment session was closed.

Final Items

Ken Miller asked for direction and input from the Study Design Team and the Technical Work Group members for his evaluation of the MMA data. It was mentioned that some report out on the MMA data could be helpful at the July committee meeting.

Wrap-up and Closing

Mr. Wheeler briefly reviewed the assignments from the call and thanked everyone for their participation. He emphasized that the FACDQ meeting will provide opportunities for clarification and further discussion on what the Pilot Design Study does not do. He encouraged group members to think about what they want to talk about at the July FACDQ meeting.

The meeting was adjourned at 3:00 PM EDT, with a happy Fourth of July to everyone.

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Attendance

Technical Work Group Members

Triangle Associates: Robert Wheeler, Derek Van Marter, Vicki Shapley

Observers

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