Analysis of Priority Chemicals in Canadian Surface Waters and XAD-2 Resin

1.0 Background:

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s (ECCC) Freshwater Quality Monitoring and Surveillance Division monitors and reports on the long-term status and trends of contaminants in water from water bodies across Canada. This Contract will cover the analyses for several chemical classes of concern to support the activities of the program requirements to support Canada’s Chemicals Management Plan and objectives of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement between Canada and the United States.

1.1. Objective:

The Contractor must provide analytical services including the results of analyses to ECCC as and when requested during the period of the Contract.

2.0 Scope:

All analyses will be performed on surface water samples or XAD-2 resin as and when requested, for the target analytes in some or all of the chemical classes listed (Annex A1).

Over the term of the Contract, approximately 95% of the samples will be surface waters and 5% will be XAD-2 resin. Bracketed values indicate estimated percentage of samples that will require analysis of each chemical class listed below. More than one chemical class may be requested per sample. Detailed list of requested target analytes in each chemical class can be found in Annex A1.

Chemical Classes

Surface water only:
A: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) (24%)
B: Bisphenol A and alternatives (29%)
C: Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (may include alkylated PAHs) (22%)
D: Alkylphenols and ethoxylates (19%)
E: Glyphosate (<1%)

XAD-2 Resin only:
F: Organochlorine Pesticides (1.5%)
G: PCB congeners (1.5%)
H: PBDE congeners (1.5%)
I: Hexabromocyclododecane isomers (<1%) 
J: Other Halogenated Flame Retardants (<1%)

Given the uncertain nature of field collections and operations, ECCC cannot guarantee the number of samples that will be submitted for analysis in any given year or for any specific chemical class. The Contractor will be paid based on a per sample basis for the given number of samples submitted by ECCC, and subsequently analyzed by the Contractor.

The analytical services will include the results of analysis. The analysis will be performed on water or resin as requested for some or all of the chemical classes listed in Annex A1, Chemical Classes with Target Analytes Chemical Classes With Target Analytes.

Limited sample may require multiple analysis per extraction, subcontracting outside of the RFP is not permitted.

Method blanks and laboratory replicate analyses are to be conducted as part of Contractor’s quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) program, and not to be considered as samples submitted.