West Virginia DEP and OLS
West Virginia environmental lab certification, WVDEP and the drinking water program.
Which West Virginia agency certifies your lab, how often you test and get inspected, how out-of-state labs qualify, and the calibration rules written into 47CSR32.
At a glance
How environmental lab certification works in West Virginia.
West Virginia is not a NELAP state as of October 2026. Two agencies certify environmental labs under their own rules: WVDEP for waste and wastewater testing, and the Office of Laboratory Services for drinking water.
State program (non-NELAP)
- Wastewater and waste
- Laboratory Quality Assurance Program (LQAP), Division of Water and Waste Management, West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection. LQAP assesses labs against 47CSR32.
- Legal basis
- W. Va. Code 22-1-15 and 47CSR32, Environmental Laboratories Certification and Standards of Performance, effective July 1, 2009
- Who needs DEP certification
- Labs conducting waste and wastewater tests. The division does not accept tests from uncertified labs as showing compliance, with exceptions in the statute. Section 22-1-15 does not apply to tests of potable or drinking water.
- Categories
- 47CSR32 section 3.2 lists certification categories, including nonpotable water, solid and chemical methods, and whole effluent toxicity. Certification is granted only for the parameters on which a lab performs acceptably.
- Drinking water
- Drinking Water Laboratory Certification Program, Office of Laboratory Services, Bureau for Public Health, West Virginia Department of Health, under 64CSR3 section 13 and the EPA drinking water certification manual
- Out-of-state labs
- WVDEP grants reciprocal certification to labs certified by an equivalent home state program covered by a reciprocity agreement, for the parameters held there (47CSR32 section 3.4). For drinking water, labs certified by EPA or an equivalent state program are certified on application (64CSR3 section 13.4).
- NELAP status
- Neither agency is a NELAP accreditation body. 47CSR32 does incorporate the 2003 NELAC Proficiency Testing standard, Chapter 2 (section 3.10.8).
The accreditation cycle
The WVDEP certification cycle.
The steps below summarize 47CSR32 for waste and wastewater labs. Drinking water labs follow the separate schedule in 64CSR3 section 13. Your certificate and program correspondence govern the specifics for your lab.
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Apply by category and parameter
Apply to the Quality Assurance Program by certification category. Certification may be granted only for the parameters on which the lab performs acceptably (47CSR32 section 3.3.5).
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Proficiency testing
Two PT studies per certification year, one every six months (section 3.10.1).
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On-site inspection
At least one inspection before certification, then inspections annually or as the Secretary determines, with no more than two years between them (section 3.11.3).
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Annual renewal
Certification is for one year. Renewal applications are due no later than 180 days before the certification expires (section 3.5).
Initial calibration
What auditors check in your initial calibrations.
Because West Virginia writes its own rules, the calibration expectations for waste and wastewater labs are in 47CSR32 itself rather than in a TNI module. Drinking water labs are held to the EPA certification manual that 64CSR3 section 13 adopts.
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.
Curve and verification counts set in the rule
For inorganic nonmetals and trace metals, 47CSR32 section 5.2.2.h requires calibration curves of one calibration blank and at least four standards, verified before each later analysis by a blank and a midpoint standard within 10 percent of the expected value. Section 5.2.2.a adds balance checks on each day of use with at least three Class-S weights.
Source: 47CSR32 section 5.2.2
47CSR32 also requires labs to record and retain all raw data and calculations so they can be verified during on-site inspections (section 5.2.1.c), and to keep analytical records for at least five years unless otherwise specified (section 5.3.1).
Self-check
Are your initial calibrations ready for a West Virginia 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.
West Virginia specifics
Two programs, and a rule that sets the numbers.
West Virginia splits certification by sample type. WVDEP certifies labs conducting waste and wastewater tests under W. Va. Code 22-1-15 and 47CSR32, and the statute expressly excludes potable and drinking water. Drinking water labs are certified by the Office of Laboratory Services under 64CSR3 section 13. A lab reporting both kinds of compliance data deals with both programs.
47CSR32 is prescriptive. It sets two PT studies per certification year, inspections no more than two years apart, balance checks on each day of use and, for inorganic and metals work, calibration curves with a blank and at least four standards and a midpoint verification within 10 percent. It borrows the 2003 NELAC Proficiency Testing standard for PT, but WVDEP is not a NELAP accreditation body, so an auditor compares your records to the state rule.
The Secretary of State lists 47CSR32 as effective July 1, 2009. On the drinking water side, the current version of 64CSR3 section 13 is effective July 1, 2025, and the program’s 2026 forms carry the name of the Department of Health, Bureau for Public Health. Confirm current versions with each program, as status may change after October 2026.
How WLTR helps
Calibration evidence ready for a West Virginia inspection.
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 a state auditor.
See how your own ICAL data looks when every analyte and model is laid out for review.
Questions
West Virginia accreditation FAQs
Is West Virginia a NELAP state?
No. Neither WVDEP nor the Office of Laboratory Services appears on TNI’s list of NELAP accreditation bodies as of October 2026. Both certify labs under West Virginia rules.
Who certifies wastewater labs in West Virginia?
The Laboratory Quality Assurance Program in the Division of Water and Waste Management, West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, under W. Va. Code 22-1-15 and 47CSR32.
Who certifies drinking water labs in West Virginia?
The Drinking Water Laboratory Certification Program of the Office of Laboratory Services, Bureau for Public Health, West Virginia Department of Health, under 64CSR3 section 13. That rule also accepts labs certified by EPA.
Does West Virginia offer reciprocity?
Under 47CSR32 section 3.4, a lab certified by its home state under equivalent conditions, where a reciprocity agreement exists, applies to WVDEP each year on a form certified by its home state agency, and reciprocity covers only parameters held there. Other out-of-state labs apply as new labs and pay auditor travel costs in advance. For drinking water, labs certified by EPA or an equivalent state program apply for certification under 64CSR3 sections 13.4 and 13.5.
What does West Virginia require for calibration curves?
For inorganic nonmetals and trace metals, 47CSR32 section 5.2.2.h requires one calibration blank and at least four standards, and the midpoint standard used for verification must be within 10 percent of the expected value.
Sources
Primary sources for this page.
- TNI, NELAP recognized accreditation bodies (opens in a new tab)
- WVDEP, Laboratory Quality Assurance Program (opens in a new tab)
- WVDEP, certified laboratory application instructions (opens in a new tab)
- W. Va. Code 22-1-15, laboratory certification (opens in a new tab)
- 47CSR32 section 3, certification program (Cornell LII copy) (opens in a new tab)
- 47CSR32 section 5, methodology and quality control (Cornell LII copy) (opens in a new tab)
- Office of Laboratory Services, Drinking Water Laboratory Certification Program (opens in a new tab)
- 64CSR3 section 13, drinking water laboratory certification (Cornell LII copy) (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 West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection or the West Virginia Department of Health. Spot something out of date? Tell us at admin@wltr.tech.
Before your next assessment
See your West Virginia 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.
Request a demoHow the methodology works
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