In June, water industry professionals across California sat down at their computers and turned on their video cameras to participate in ELAP’s inaugural conference. The event was held virtually from June 1st to June 3rd and featured expert presentations on the latest in environmental testing and analysis. Attendees also gained valuable insight into important developments in the industry, including ELAP’s changing accreditation regulations. 

This year’s conference is a part of ELAP’s larger efforts to modernize their program requirements and transition laboratories into the new accreditation process. The Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program or ELAP, has been around since 1989, when it was founded as part of the California Environmental Laboratory Improvement Act. ELAP’s mission is to ensure that California’s regulatory agencies use laboratories that generate reliable, and consistent environmental and public health data of known and documented quality. Since the program’s launch, the state has relied on ELAP-accredited labs to provide a solid, science-based foundation for environmental and public health policies. But several decades of rapid advancements in testing techniques and technologies left ELAP’s regulatory requirements woefully outdated. After a multi-year, stakeholder-involved process, ELAP adopted new regulations that significantly updated the accreditation requirements. The updates were finalized on January 1st of this year, but many new provisions, such as the 2016 TNI Laboratory Standard requirements, are not yet in effect. In the meantime, ELAP has boosted their outreach programs to help labs through the transition. They published a Roadmap to ELAP Accreditation, which features a master timeline for the next few years, and held multiple informational workshops over the winter of 2021. 

As a part of ELAP’s outreach campaign to assist labs with the accreditation transition, the June conference focused on the theme “Quality through Collaboration.” In a joint statement discussing the goals of the conference, ELAP Conference co-chairs Jennifer McClaren and Katlin Bloom wrote, “The conference theme [...] embodies the most positive outcomes of a difficult season; how our industry has not only worked together, but persevered through unprecedented challenges. It is our hope that this conference will highlight some of the best and most exciting topics happening in the environmental laboratory community, provide an opportunity to learn from the experts, and spark new ideas for improving your laboratory.” 

During the first day of the conference, ELAP presenters discussed the new accreditation requirements and provided labs with a better understanding of ELAP’s future expectations. But the conference wasn’t limited to discussing ELAP’s recent accreditation changes. Guest speakers presented virtually on a range of subjects, from hot topics in the industry like microplastics and DNA analysis to the practical matters of laboratory workflow. Audiences could also engage with experts in Q&A panels or on the interactive Slack channel, which helped bridge the digital divide between presenters and participants. 

Despite the unique challenges of an all-virtual format, the 2021 ELAP Conference has met with resounding positive feedback from the community. Given the success of the inaugural event, it is no surprise that ELAP will be partnering with the California Society of Environmental Analysts (CESA) to bring back “ELAPCon” in 2022. Interested participants can help ELAP and CSEA “Raise the Tide” on May 31st through June 2nd by reaching out to ELAP and the CSEA. 

As an ELAP and NELAP-accredited environmental testing lab with over 112 years of experience, Babcock stays up-to-date on the latest industry events. To find out more about our accreditations or to learn more about industry events, click on the links to view our website.