Section 18.75.355. Sampling and analysis.

	(a)  Unless the department determines that final confirmation sampling is not needed to meet the requirements of the site cleanup rules, a responsible person shall submit a sampling and analysis plan for approval under 18 AAC 75.360, and after implementing the plan, shall submit the analytical sampling results collected to the department. If approved in the sampling and analysis plan, sample collection for soil or water may be performed by a qualified sampler when a qualified environmental professional is not available. Based on the results of the analyses, a responsible person shall demonstrate compliance with the site cleanup rules.  
	(b)  A responsible person and the owner or operator of an offsite or portable treatment facility under 18 AAC 75.365 shall ensure that the collection, interpretation, and reporting of data, and the required sampling and analysis is conducted or supervised by a qualified environmental professional.  
	(c)  If a hazardous substance is suspected at the site because of empirical evidence or prior analysis, but is not detected or is detected at a concentration below the practical quantitation limit, and the practical quantitation limit is higher than the cleanup level for that substance,  
		(1) the department will determine the responsible person to have attained the cleanup level, if additionally the more stringent of the following conditions is met:  
			(A) the practical quantitation limit is no greater than 10 times the method detection limit for all hazardous substances other than polychlorinated biphenyls where the practical quantitation limit is no greater than five times the method detection limit; or  
			(B) the practical quantitation limit is no greater than the practical quantitation limit established in EPA's Test Methods for Evaluating Solid Waste, Physical/Chemical Methods (SW-846), Third Edition, including Final Update IV (2009), adopted by reference; and  
		(2) if the department determines that additional action is necessary to ensure protection of human health, safety, or welfare, or of the environment, the department will require one or more of the following:  
			(A) use of a surrogate measure to estimate the concentration of the hazardous substance;  
			(B) use of a specialized sample collection or analytical method to improve the accuracy, precision, method detection limit, or practical quantitation limit for the hazardous substances at the site; or  
			(C) monitoring to ensure that the concentration of the hazardous substance does not exceed quantitatable levels; and  
		(3) if the department determines that an improved analytical method or other responsive action is necessary to ensure protection of human health, safety, or welfare, or of the environment, the department will, before site closure and if the site is in a monitoring stage, periodically consider whether improved analytical methods should be used at the site and will require the use of an improved analytical method or other responsive action.  
	(d)  Among the analytical methods set out in EPA's Test Methods for Evaluating Solid Waste, Physical/Chemical Methods (SW-846), as adopted by reference in (c) of this section, if there is more than one analytical method for a hazardous substance, a responsible person may select any of those methods with a practical quantitation limit less than the applicable cleanup level. If only one analytical method has a practical quantitation limit less than the applicable cleanup level, that method must be used. Analysis for petroleum contamination must follow the applicable Alaska methods for petroleum hydrocarbons referred to in Table 1 of Chapter 2 of the Underground Storage Tanks Procedures Manual, dated August 18, 2014. Table 1 of Chapter 2 and Appendices C and D of the Underground Storage Tanks Procedures Manual, dated August 18, 2014 are adopted by reference.  
	(e)  Laboratory analysis under the site cleanup rules must be performed by a laboratory approved by the department under 18 AAC 78.800 - 18 AAC 78.815.  

Authorities

44.46.025;46.03.020;46.03.050;46.03.710;46.03.740;46.03.745;46.04.020;46.04.070;46.09.020

Notes

Reference

18 AAC 75.333
18 AAC 75.360
18 AAC 75.365

Authority

AS 44.46.025 AS 46.03.020 AS 46.03.050 AS 46.03.710 AS 46.03.740 AS 46.03.745 AS 46.04.020 AS 46.04.070 AS 46.09.020 The documents adopted by reference in 18 AAC 75.355 may be viewed at or obtained from the department's offices in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, and Soldotna, or the department's Internet website at http://dec.alaska.gov/spar/guidance.htm. EPA's Test Methods for Evaluating Solid Waste, Physical/Chemical Methods (SW-846), may also be viewed at http://www.epa.gov/wastes/hazard/testmethods/sw846/online/index.htm.

History

Eff. 1/22/99, Register 149; am 8/27/2000, Register 155; am 1/30/2003, Register 165; am 6/17/2015, Register 214

References

18.75.355