BACKGROUND

The Integrated Monitoring Plan for the Oil Sands and the Joint Canada/Alberta Implementation Plan for Oil Sands Monitoring require that Environment and Climate Change Canada continue long-term water quality monitoring at a number of sites on the Athabasca River and tributaries, Peace River, Slave River and sites within the Peace-Athabasca Delta. Parameters to be monitored include both total mercury and methyl mercury in water.

There will be up to 290 water samples to be analyzed for both total mercury and methyl mercury per year for the duration of the contract. These numbers may increase or decrease, depending upon field conditions which may preclude collecting some samples, and upon QA/QC samples, which may be increased if necessary

STATEMENT OF WORK

The contractor will analyze water samples for ultra-trace level total mercury and methyl mercury, and must be accredited by the Canadian Association for Laboratory Accreditation for these analyses, as described below. The contractor must have extensive experience, both recent and long-term, in these analyses.

Total mercury and methyl mercury analyses of water must be accredited by the Canadian Association for Laboratory Accreditation (CALA) to ISO/IEC 17025.

Total mercury analyses in water must be performed within the 28 day holding time.

Total mercury measurements in water are to be based upon the SnCl2 reduction method, gold amalgam trapping, with fluorescence detection (EPA1631e). For water samples, a method detection limit (MDL) of 0.04 ng mercury per litre with a 50 ml sample is required.

Methyl mercury measurements in water will employ an ethylation step followed by purge and trap/GC separation and fluorescence detection (EPA1630). For water samples, a method detection limit of 0.01 ng mercury per litre with 40 ml sample or 0.03 ng mercury per litre with 20 ml sample is required.

Analytical results must be transferred to the Technical Authority within 4 weeks of receipt of samples.

The Contractor must participate in, at its own expense, relevant Quality Assurance programs and proficiency tests to maintain accreditation. The Contractor must reveal to the Technical Authority all the results, quality records, reports and correspondences in connection with the studies upon request and at no cost to the Technical Authority. If any accreditation is revoked the Contractor must advise the Technical Authority immediately.

The Contractor shall advise the Technical Authority as to the appropriate field sampling protocols and any field preservation requirements. The Contractor shall provide required sampling containers at no additional cost, and powder-free gloves at a cost to be determined by the Contractor.

The Contractor agrees to promptly notify the Technical Authority if any samples are damaged (container broken), spoiled (left unattended at ambient temperature), mixed-up, discarded, or lost. If the Contractor is found responsible for causing damage, spoilage, misidentification or loss of samples, or allows samples to exceed standard holding times for the specific test, the Contractor will agree to compensate the Technical Authority for any direct re-sampling costs which will be determined by the Technical Authority. This may include sample shipping costs and any other costs associate with re-sampling as deemed fit by the Technical Authority.

The Contractor must store sample extracts and unanalyzed remainder of samples for a minimum of 90 days after delivery of the final data report at no additional cost to the Technical Authority. Within those 90 days, the Technical Authority has the right to request re-analysis and/or re-work if analysis was not performed in accordance with the Agreement. After 90 days the Contractor may dispose of the remaining samples or extracts, unless otherwise requested by the Technical Authority. Disposal of samples must be conducted within the boundary of all applicable federal, provincial and city laws at no extra charge to Environment and Climate Change Canada.

The Contractor will receive samples in coolers delivered by courier (ground or air) from Mondays through Fridays, except all statutory holidays, from Environment and Climate Change Canada.

The Contractor must establish a continuity/chain of custody form for sample tracking which must be appended to the final data report.

The Contractor must ensure that the site names and numbers on the sample containers correspond to those on the submission sheet; inspect sample containers to ensure all samples have been received in good condition, and measure and record internal cooler temperature on arrival. These recordings must become part of the data report file. All discrepancies or problems with sample condition must be reported to the Technical Authority immediately.

The Contractor must ensure that all water samples are properly preserved after their receipt and prior to extraction or analysis. Any chemical preservatives added to samples upon receipt at the Contractor’s premises must be documented and must be done according to the established or published methods as described previously in paragraphs two through seven of this section.

Test results must be provided by the contractor within the turnaround times indicated below in electronic file format. Analytical reports must include internal quality assurance information (eg. SRMs, spike recovery for batches, duplicates and blanks). There will be no extra charge to the Technical Authority for formatting and transporting results into the Environment and Climate Change Canada database. An example of the format required for the ingress into the Environment and Climate Change Canada Database can be found in Appendix B.

All data reports/certificates of analysis must include pertinent Quality Assurance / Quality Control (QA/QC) data and must be approved and certified by authorized personnel of the Contractor prior to release to the Technical Authority. 

Quality records will be maintained to demonstrate conformance to specified requirements and the effective operation of the quality system of the Contractor. All records will be legible and stored such that they are readily retrievable in facilities that provide a suitable environment to prevent damage or deterioration and to prevent loss. All raw data and pertinent internal quality control data will be made available for evaluation by the Technical Authority or their representative for an agreed period, and all such records must be archived for a minimum of 3 years. (Quality records may be in the form of any type of media, such as hard copy or electronic media, and may include raw data, control charts and chromatograms).

The Contractor must complete the analysis within the shelf life of the sample.

The Contractor must report results within 30 calendar days from receipt of sample. 

The Contractor’s laboratory must be in a location where delivery of samples is achievable in 72 hours or less from time of shipment. This time frame must include potential customs clearance.