Sensors for Water Interest Group, Swig, organised a workshop to discuss the potential role that it might play in the future development and deployment of the MCerts scheme within the water sector
The UK Environment Agency's Monitoring Certification Scheme (MCerts) was the focus of the recent WWEM 2005 event.
However, it became clear that no organisation existed to represent the views of all parties affected by the scheme's extension to monitoring of waste water discharges and receiving water quality ie water companies, process industry, instrument manufacturers and laboratories.
Consequently Swig (Sensors for Water Interest Group) organised a workshop to discuss the potential role that Swig might play in the future development and deployment of the MCerts scheme within the water sector.
Stuart Newstead, Swig secretary, opened the meeting by reminding delegates of Swig's objectives, which include representing its members' interests to government, European organisations and other interested parties.
It seems likely, therefore that Swig could play an important role, and the purpose of the workshop was to examine this possibility, and seek consensus on the best way forward.
John Tipping, who manages the MCerts schemes for the Environment Agency, first outlined the history of the scheme within the context of the agency's Modernising Regulation Agenda.
He said that there is an increasing emphasis on self-monitoring and as such MCerts will help to ensure that this monitoring will be transparent and credible to local communities and the public generally.
MCerts is well developed within the air quality monitoring sector, however, it is still in its infancy within the water sector and Tipping believes that the evolution of MCerts for water will be dependent on cooperation with industry and he saw a significant role for Swig in this regard.
David Hewitt from Siemens outlined his company's experience in the attainment of MCerts certificates for two of its open channel flow meters, Alan Apps from PPM reported on progress being made to certify the PPM TOC analyser.
David Tyler from Anglia Water Services discussed the process of change that accompanies the introduction of MCerts to water companies, and Dave Curtis outlined the experiences of the Source Testing Association in the development of MCerts in the air quality sector.
Stuart Newstead then chaired a forum during which a number of issues were discussed that could be included in a future Swig initiative.
These included the creation of a sub-group, the inclusion of process industries as well as the water industry, promotion of MCerts internationally, and the organisation of training schemes.
During this discussion Dave Curtis emphasised the importance of widespread participation in the development of MCerts, citing an example within the air sector whereby instrument manufacturers successfully proposed a low cost scheme for a Class 2 analyser in which certification could be achieved for as little as £1500.
The results of the forum were submitted to the Swig Board, which approved the establishment of a Swig sub-group to represent members' interests vis-a-vis the agency's Modernising Regulation Agenda and MCerts in particular.
Stuart Newstead will be working up the terms of reference for this sub-group in the coming weeks.
