Advancing Emissions Testing Data Reliability Through Accreditation

TRC is excited to announce that it has renewed third party accreditation of our Quality Management System (QMS) in accordance with ASTM D7036:2004 Standard Practice for Competence of Air Emission Testing Bodies (AETBs) for the fifth time. This global consensus standard defines the criteria for a QMS under which AETBs should operate to consistently generate emission testing data of documented quality. Accreditation to this standard is provided jointly by American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA) and the Stack Testing Accreditation Council (STAC).

TRC has been a leader in this program since before it became a requirement of 40 CFR Part 75 (40CFR75), Appendix A on March 27, 2012. We received interim accreditation of our QMS through STAC in February 2011, and we were the first to be fully accredited by STAC/A2LA in April 2015. Since then, TRC has consistently and successfully renewed our accreditation in April 2017, April 2019 and most recently in April 2021.

A2LA manages the QMS accreditation process, which consists of three steps:

1. The application is submitted and reviewed STAC/A2LA experienced auditing staff.
2. A structural assessment is performed by their auditors to determine whether all the elements required by the standard are in place.
3. A functional assessment is performed by these third-party auditors to determine whether the AETB truly operates in accordance with its quality management system.

AETBs that conduct Relative Accuracy Test Audits (RATAs) under 40CFR75 must operate in accordance with this standard, but they have the option to “open their books” and be truly audited by third-party review, or simply to self-declare their conformance. TRC believes that a rigorous quality standard should apply to all emission testing data and voluntarily accepts third-party review for all the tests we conduct, not just those required under 40CFR75.

Of the more than 200 firms that purport to conduct emission testing, only eleven have recognized the benefit, and made the investment, to obtain transparent, third-party accreditation to ASTM D7036.

Why Does This Matter?

A quality management system that has been third-party accredited for over 10 years provides TRC’s clients with emission testing results that are of defined and documented quality. The QMS specified in ASTM D7036 requires processes and procedures that create operational consistency, drive continuous improvement, integrate employee involvement and establishes a platform for data-driven decision making.

Our commitment to the transparency inherent in the third-party process leads to reliable, accurate, consistent and reproducible results. Since the current emphasis on Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) points towards increasing regulatory scrutiny, ensuring accurate and reliable emission test data is more important than ever. The cost of a high-quality emission test pales in comparison to the short- and long-term impacts of dealing with regulatory violations or non-compliance liabilities due to a poorly-performed test, and the TRC team prides themselves on providing clients with results they can trust.

Jeff Burdette, Senior Vice-President and National Air Services Practice Leader provides this note of congratulations to the team for their year over year dedication and hard work in maintaining an effective a quality management system. “TRC’s re-accreditation is due to the outstanding performance of our air emissions testing staff to rigorously adhere to our quality standards and to drive continuous program improvements in order to yield results our clients can trust”.

Want to Learn More?

TRC’s Air Quality team of expert scientists and engineers develop and execute solutions to achieve regulatory compliance, manage business risks and improve operational performance. Our fully integrated suite of services includes air quality consulting, dispersion modeling, pollution control engineering, ambient air monitoring and source testing.

We deliver consistent value by utilizing our nationwide presence with offices in 30 states, extensive state-of-the-art monitoring equipment, over 250 skilled professionals and an accredited quality management system to deliver full life-cycle solutions from design, permitting, equipment commissioning, through operations.