Alabama ADEM
Alabama drinking water lab certification, ADEM and the EPA manual.
Who certifies drinking water labs in Alabama, which manual the rule adopts, how out-of-state labs qualify, and what auditors look for in your initial calibrations.
At a glance
How drinking water lab certification works in Alabama.
Alabama is not a NELAP state. The Alabama Department of Environmental Management certifies laboratories that test drinking water, under its own rule, which adopts the EPA Manual for the Certification of Laboratories Analyzing Drinking Water.
Drinking water lab certification
- Program
- Drinking water laboratory certification, Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM). ADEM’s program page directs questions to its Drinking Water Branch.
- Rule
- ADEM Admin. Code chapter 335-7-13, Laboratory Certification, in the Water Division’s Water Supply Program rules, effective June 14, 2021
- Who needs it
- Any laboratory performing Department-required analyses to determine the quality of drinking water. ADEM states that public water systems must use ADEM-certified laboratories, or laboratories certified by EPA, for nearly all required monitoring.
- Standard adopted
- The EPA Manual for the Certification of Laboratories Analyzing Drinking Water, unless the Department directs otherwise in writing. Where the manual and an EPA method conflict, the method governs (335-7-13-.05).
- Certification types
- Certified, provisionally certified, interim, and not certified (335-7-13-.07). A lab that is not certified may not submit results to the Department for compliance purposes.
- Out-of-state labs
- Certification reciprocity under 335-7-13-.06(3). The certificate and scope of analysis must come directly from the certifying authority that issued the lab’s original certification, not from the applicant.
- NELAP status
- Not a NELAP accreditation body, as of October 2026. Alabama does not appear on TNI’s list of NELAP recognized accreditation bodies.
The accreditation cycle
From application to renewal.
The steps below summarize rule 335-7-13-.06 for laboratories located in Alabama. Your certificate and ADEM correspondence govern the specifics for your lab.
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Apply by parameter
Submit an ADEM-approved application form listing the parameters for which the lab is seeking certification, with the application fee.
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Performance evaluation samples
Submit a satisfactory set of performance evaluation (PE) samples for each parameter using the EPA-approved drinking water method, and analyze PE samples at least annually or as the Department directs.
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On-site audit
Pass an on-site audit within the previous three years. ADEM may require a corrective action plan, due within 60 days of receipt of the audit report.
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Annual renewal
Certification is effective for one year. A lab may apply to renew up to 30 days after expiration; after that, it must submit a complete application for initial certification.
Initial calibration
What auditors check in your initial calibrations.
Alabama’s rule sets no calibration criteria of its own. Calibration requirements come from the EPA certification manual the rule adopts and from the EPA drinking water methods, and the rule adds recordkeeping duties that decide what an auditor can review.
A range that brackets what you report
The lowest standard should sit at or below your reporting limit and the highest at or above the top concentration you report. Results outside the calibrated range need to be qualified.
Error at the low end, not r² alone
A correlation coefficient of 0.999 can still hide a low standard that back-calculates 30 percent off. Auditors look at relative error, especially at the lowest levels.
Records that rebuild the curve
Raw responses, the model and weighting used, any excluded points with the reason, and the verification that followed. An auditor should be able to reconstruct every initial calibration from the record.
Records kept through the next audit
335-7-13-.11 requires easily accessible records for five years from creation or until the next on-site audit is complete, whichever is longer, and copies of analyses, raw data, calculations and quality control data for the client water system on request. Calibration criteria themselves come from the EPA certification manual and the method, and the method governs any conflict.
Source: ADEM Admin. Code r. 335-7-13-.05 and 335-7-13-.11
Because the rule points to the EPA certification manual and the EPA methods, an auditor compares your calibration records to those documents. Rule 335-7-13-.11 already requires you to keep records and make raw data, calculations and quality control data available on request.
Self-check
Are your initial calibrations ready for an Alabama assessment?
Tick what your lab could show an auditor today. Nothing you select is saved or sent anywhere.
6Checks to work through
Select each item your lab could show an auditor today.
A self-assessment to help you prepare, not a compliance determination.
What changed
Alabama wrote its lab certification rule in 2021.
Chapter 335-7-13 took effect June 14, 2021. An earlier version of the chapter, first effective in 1997, was repealed in 2012. ADEM’s summary of the 2021 rulemaking said the new chapter would codify the requirements for laboratories that analyze drinking water in Alabama and formalize procedures the Department had used for many years, to maintain primacy for its Public Water System Supervision program.
The rule is short and leans on federal documents. Labs follow the EPA Manual for the Certification of Laboratories Analyzing Drinking Water and the EPA methods, with the method governing any conflict. What the state adds is the cycle: one year certificates, PE samples at least annually, an on-site audit within the previous three years, and records kept for five years or until the next audit is complete, whichever is longer.
As of October 2026, the official Alabama Administrative Code shows no amendment to chapter 335-7-13 since the 2021 rule. ADEM publishes separate lists of certified bacteriological laboratories, in-state and out-of-state certified chemical laboratories, and certified PFAS laboratories. Check with a lab that it is currently certified before relying on it, as ADEM advises.
How WLTR helps
Calibration evidence ready for an Alabama audit.
WLTR independently reviews the calibration your instrument software produced. Your analyst still makes the final call. What changes is that the evidence is complete, consistent across analysts, and ready before the auditor asks for it.
- Each analyte reviewed one at a time in the instrument software.
- The model and weighting are whatever the batch was processed with.
- r² is the number most people look at, even though it does not measure error at the low end.
- QA signs off without an independent check on the curve.
- Every analyte and every candidate model side by side in the Calibration Intelligence dashboard.
- Diagnostics run automatically and the best fit curve is identified, with the reasons recorded.
- Relative error at every level, including the lowest standard, shown on one screen.
- A traceable record your QA manager can review, sign and hand to an ADEM on-site auditor.
See how your own ICAL data looks when every analyte and model is laid out for review.
Questions
Alabama accreditation FAQs
Is Alabama a NELAP state?
No. Alabama does not appear on TNI’s list of NELAP recognized accreditation bodies as of October 2026. ADEM certifies drinking water laboratories under its own rule, chapter 335-7-13.
Who certifies drinking water labs in Alabama?
The Alabama Department of Environmental Management, under ADEM Admin. Code chapter 335-7-13. ADEM states that public water systems must use ADEM-certified laboratories, or laboratories certified by EPA, for nearly all required monitoring.
Can an out-of-state lab be certified in Alabama?
Yes, through certification reciprocity under 335-7-13-.06(3). The lab submits an ADEM-approved application and fee, and the certifying authority that issued its original certification must send the certificate and scope of analysis directly to ADEM.
How long does Alabama certification last?
One year (335-7-13-.06). A lab may apply to renew up to 30 days after expiration. A lab located in Alabama must also analyze PE samples at least annually, or as the Department directs, and pass an on-site audit within the previous three years.
Does Alabama have its own initial calibration rule?
No separate rule. Chapter 335-7-13 requires labs to follow the EPA Manual for the Certification of Laboratories Analyzing Drinking Water and the EPA methods, with the method governing any conflict, and to keep raw data, calculations and quality control data on record.
Sources
Primary sources for this page.
- ADEM, drinking water laboratory certification program (opens in a new tab)
- Ala. Admin. Code ch. 335-7-13, Laboratory Certification (official) (opens in a new tab)
- Ala. Admin. Code r. 335-7-13-.05, Certification Manual (opens in a new tab)
- Ala. Admin. Code r. 335-7-13-.06, Certification Process (opens in a new tab)
- Ala. Admin. Code r. 335-7-13-.11, Recordkeeping (opens in a new tab)
- ADEM, summary of 2021 Division 7 rule changes (opens in a new tab)
- TNI, NELAP recognized accreditation bodies (opens in a new tab)
This page summarizes public program information to help labs prepare. Requirements change, and the agency’s current rules and guidance always take precedence. WLTR is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management. Spot something out of date? Tell us at admin@wltr.tech.
Before your next assessment
See your Alabama ICALs the way an auditor will.
Bring a recent initial calibration. We will walk you through every analyte and candidate model in the Calibration Intelligence dashboard, the best fit, and the record your QA manager would sign.
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