Industrial Wastewater Sampling – Methodologies and Protocols

1. Industrial Wastewater Sampling – Methodologies and Protocols A Tale of Two Sampling Programs City of Portland - Bureau of Environmental Services and Clean Water Services

2. Presentation Overview • BES Overview • CWS Overview • BES Sampling Methods • CWS Sampling Methods • Question and Answer

3. BES Industrial Wastewater Sampling Program Overview Doug Hutchinson and Megan Schubel

4. Let’s Do the Numbers... • Permitted Industries: 160 • Permitted Discharging Industries: 135 • Sample points: 140 • Monthly vs. quarterly vs. semi-annual samples: 22% vs. 36% vs. 42% • Total grab samples per year: ~600 • Total composite samples per year: ~600

5. Industrial Sampling Locations Map Columbia River

6. What makes Portland unique? • Large number of industries and samples • Wide range of industrial users • Age of industries and infrastructure • Combined waste streams • Challenging sampling points • City code (17.34.080 (c)) does not necessarily require specific monitoring location: “...may require an industrial wastewater discharger to install and maintain at the discharger's expense a suitable manhole in the discharger's branch sewer or other suitable monitoring access…”

7. Pollution Prevention Services Organizational Chart

8. Field Operations Overview • Industrial wastewater monitoring • Surface water sampling and temperature monitoring • Stormwater sampling • Short-term flow monitoring • Groundwater monitoring • Biosolids • Soils and sediment sampling • Miscellaneous projects

9. Industrial Sampling Work Flow Wastewater Sampling Crew (Field Operations) Permit Managers (Industrial Pretreatment Permitting) Lab

10. Compliance Monitoring Schedule (CMS) provided by Permit Manager (PM) CMS converted to yearly industrial sampling schedule by field staff Monthly schedule created by field staff Sampling activities by field staff Industrial Sampling Process Flow Chart

12. Yearly Schedule Spreadsheet

13. Off to the Field...

14. BES Sampling Prep and Field Work

15. Monthly Sampling Schedule

16. Maps and Sampling Notes

17. Equipment Overview

18. pH Meter Calibration • 2 dedicated meters • calibrated to 4.0-7.0 • calibrated to 7.0-10.0 • Calibrated daily before field work • replace buffer and storage solution daily • Drift check at end of sampling run • acceptable drift  0.1 pH units

19. Decontamination Procedure for Pump Tubing • Pumped through silicone-rubber tubing to decontaminate for metals • Non-phosphate soap and water • Tap water • 10% nitric acid rinse • Deionized water • Monthly rinsate blank collected for metals • Every 6 months, or as needed, old tubing discarded

20. Return to Lab & relinquish samples and COC. Arrive at industry, sign in and/or notify contact. Document all sampling & other activity in Chain-of-Custody Logbook. Update tracking notebook. Test manhole / vault atmosphere with gas monitor. Collect grabs if necessary. If composite is set, return next day to pick up. Need to collect composite sample? Return to Lab and relinquish samples and COC. YES NO NO Set up composite sampler. YES Document all sampling & other activity in Chain-of-Custody Logbook. Update tracking notebook. Go to next site?

21. Points of Compliance: Typical…

22. …to Exceptional

23. Grab Sample Collection Typical grab sample parameters: • pH • Oil and grease • Volatile and/or semi-volatile compounds • Total or amenable cyanide • Total sulfide or dissolved sulfide

24. Grab Collection Methods • Collect directly into bottle (preferred) - required for oil and grease samples • Pour from stainless steel bailer into container • Volatile organic compounds • Dissolved sulfide • Pump with sampler (if setting composite) • pH • Total and amenable cyanide • Total sulfide

25. pH Compliance • Acceptable range = 5.0-11.5 • If outside range: • record initial measurement on chain-of-custody • recalibrate with fresh buffer • re-measure original grab • record on chain-of-custody and call PM and IU if in violation • collect follow-up sample?

26. Composite Sampler Set-Up

27. Programming and Calibration Sampler calibrated for a 50-mL aliquot. For a standard setup, sampler programmed to take an aliquot every 30 minutes for 24 hours.

28. Composite Sample Retrieval • 24-hour Composite • Hours of Operation • Batch

29. Chain-of-Custody Documentation

31. Analyte and Sample Tracking Record

32. Monthly Sampling Schedule Example

33. Sample Relinquishing • Relinquish samples and chain-of-custody log to sample custodian • Drift check pH meters • Discard or wash used equipment • Wash hands!

34. Common Problems & Solutions

35. Problematic Sampling Conditions • Combined wastestreams • High solids content • Stagnant water • Very low flow • Deep manholes • Batch dischargers

36. Combined Waste / High Solids Sanitary waste in same line as process waste Low-profile sample head for combined wastewater

37. Stagnant Water in Vaults Floating fat layer in a stagnant vault and sediment buildup on the bottom Secure tubing below fat layer and above sediment on floor of vault

38. Low Level, High Velocity Flow Low level sample head, secured from above

39. Deep Manholes Sampling at depths > 20 feet can exceed the capacity of the peristaltic pump to draw sample Must sometimes lower sampler down into bottom of manhole, hang halfway, or suspend on platform

40. “Pressurized” Line Modify setup and tap into the line for a composite

41. Bucket Improv Method (BIM) Spigot overflows into bucket

42. Batch / Intermittent Discharge • Use a liquid level trigger (flow actuator) • More frequent aliquots collected (e.g., every 5 minutes instead of 30 minutes) • Coordination with the industry

43. Communication Issues • Designate an industrial on-site contact • Be proactive in setting up batch discharge sampling events • More communication with industry can facilitate better sampling points • Having a PM and an independent sampling crew can cause miscommunication