The Environmental Laboratories at Westchester County's Dept of Labs and Research are pleased to announce that we have completed EPA proficiencies required in analyzing contaminants under the the EPA's recently promulgated second cycle of its Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR2).

The UCMR benefits the environment and public health by providing EPA and other interested parties with scientifically valid data on the occurrence of these contaminants in drinking water, permitting assessment of the population being exposed and the levels of that exposure. This information is the primary source of exposure data for the Agency to determine whether to regulate these contaminants.

Twenty-five unregulated contaminants will be monitored by many US drinking water suppliers under a new rule promulgated by the USEPA. This second cycle of the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 2) also proposes the use of five analytical methods to detect the contaminants. The data collected will help the EPA determine whether to regulate the contaminants, their occurrence in drinking water, the potential population exposed to each, and the levels of exposure. All public water systems serving more than 10,000 people and a sample of 800 systems serving 10,000 people or fewer will monitor those contaminants on the assessment list for 12 months during July 2007 through July 2010 . . . For general information on UCMR 2, visit the EPA Safewater web site at www.epa.gov/safewater/ucmr/ucmr2 or call the Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791.