Environmental Solutions

Environmental Testing, Contamination Investigation & Scientific Support

Environmental problems rarely exist within a single sample or analytical discipline.

A contaminant detected in water may originate from soil, industrial activity, raw materials, waste streams, infrastructure, or another environmental source. An unexpected environmental result may require chemical analysis, microbiology, elemental analysis, or a broader investigation to understand what is happening. .

What contaminants are present?

Is PFAS affecting our water or environmental samples?

Why did an environmental result change unexpectedly?

Could an industrial process be contributing to contamination?

How should we investigate an unknown environmental contaminant?

What laboratory testing is appropriate for our project?

CMDC Labs supports appropriate environmental projects with multidisciplinary resources spanningwater testing, PFAS analysis, wastewater testing, soil testing, environmental microbiology, chemical and analytical testing, heavy-metal analysis, contamination investigation, scientific troubleshooting, research, scientific consulting, and regulatory support.

CMDC Labs is
accredited under

Scientific Support for Environmental Projects

Environmental investigations can involve interconnected sample types and potential contamination pathways.

Depending on the project, relevant samples may include:

Drinking water
Groundwater
Wastewater
Process water
Surface water
Soil
Industrial waste
Environmental materials
Unknown contaminants
Microbiological samples
Comparative background samples

The appropriate laboratory strategy depends on the environmental question, potential contaminants, sample matrix, and intended use of the resulting data.

CMDC Labs can help organizations determine which available analytical capabilities may be appropriate.

Water & Environmental Testing

Laboratory Analysis for Environmental Questions

Water and environmental testing can support organizations investigating contamination,
monitoring environmental conditions, evaluating water quality, or generating analytical
information for quality and compliance programs.

Projects may involve:

Drinking water
Groundwater
Wastewater
Environmental water
Soil
Industrial samples
Chemical contaminants
Microorganisms
Heavy metals
PFAS

Testing should be selected according to the sample, potential contaminant, required analytical
performance, and project objective.

PFAS Testing

Investigate Persistent Environmental Contaminants

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have become an important concern across water
and environmental systems.

Organizations may require PFAS analysis for projects involving appropriate:

The appropriate analytical approach depends on the sample matrix, target compounds,
reporting requirements, and intended use of the data.

PFAS results may also become one part of a larger environmental investigation when the
potential source or pathway of contamination is unknown.

Drinking Water Testing

Drinking-water quality can involve chemical, elemental, microbiological, and emerging-
contaminant concerns.

Depending on the project, testing may evaluate:

CMDC Labs supports organizations that require laboratory information to better understand
drinking-water quality and potential contamination concerns.

Groundwater Testing

Evaluate Environmental Conditions Below the Surface

Groundwater can be affected by natural conditions and human activity.

Potential scientific questions may involve:

Chemical contaminants
Metals
PFAS
Microbiological conditions
Industrial contamination
Changes between sampling locations
Changes over time

Comparative sampling across appropriate locations or time periods may help identify patterns
that deserve further investigation.

Wastewater Testing

Wastewater can provide important information about industrial, commercial, municipal, or other
processes.

Laboratory testing may support questions involving:

Chemical characteristics
Contaminants
Metals
Microbiology
Process-related changes
Environmental monitoring
Compliance-related requirements

The analytical program should reflect the wastewater source, project objective, applicable
requirements, and intended use of the data.

Soil Testing & Environmental Investigation

Soil can act as a source, pathway, or reservoir for environmental contaminants.

Appropriate projects may involve investigation of:

Where soil contamination may be connected to water or another environmental system, multiple
sample types can be evaluated as part of a broader investigation.

Heavy Metals in Environmental Samples

Sensitive Elemental Analysis for Environmental
Investigation

Metals may occur naturally or result from industrial, infrastructure, manufacturing, or other
environmental sources.

Appropriate analysis may support investigation of:

ICP-MS can provide sensitive elemental analysis for appropriate applications.

Target elements, sample preparation, reporting limits, and analytical requirements should be
established according to the sample matrix and project objective.

Environmental Microbiology

Not every environmental contamination problem is chemical.

Microorganisms can influence:

Microbiological testing may involve:

Identifying an unexpected microorganism may provide useful information for determining
potential sources or appropriate follow-up investigation.

Environmental Contamination Investigation

Move From Detection Toward Understanding the Source

Detecting a contaminant answers one question:

Is something present?

A larger investigation may need to answer:

Where did it come from?

Potential sources may include:

Industrial operations
Raw materials
Waste streams
Water systems
Soil
Infrastructure
Manufacturing processes
Environmental releases
Naturally occurring materials
Unknown sources

A structured investigation may progress through:

Unexpected Environmental Finding

↓
Characterize the Contaminant
↓
Review Site / Process / Sample History
↓
Identify Potential Sources
↓
Compare Relevant Environmental Samples
↓
Develop Source Hypotheses
↓
Targeted Follow-Up Testing

Unknown Contaminant Investigation

Sometimes the first challenge is determining what the material or contaminant actually is.

An unknown may appear as:

Residue
Deposit
Particle
Film
Discoloration
Unexpected chemical signal
Material in water or another environmental sample

Depending on the sample, investigation may draw upon:

Microscopy
●
Spectroscopy
●
Elemental Analysis
●
Chemical Analysis
●
Other Appropriate Characterization Techniques

The objective is to characterize the unknown sufficiently to guide the next stage of investigation.

Chemical & Analytical Testing

Environmental investigations frequently require analytical chemistry.

Projects may involve:

Chemical contaminants
Unknown materials
Organic compounds
Metals
Comparative samples
Industrial materials
Water
Soil
Wastewater

Relevant analytical approaches may include chromatography, spectroscopy, elemental analysis,
microscopy, and other techniques appropriate to the scientific question.

Environmental Monitoring

Generate Data Across Locations or Time

Some environmental questions cannot be answered from a single sample.

Monitoring programs may help organizations evaluate:

Changes over time
Differences between locations
Recurring contamination
Process-related environmental changes
Water quality
Microbiological conditions
Chemical contaminants

The sampling plan should be designed around the question the organization needs to answer.

A useful monitoring program considers where to sample, when to sample, what to measure,
and how results will be compared.

Industrial Environmental Testing

Industrial operations can generate environmental questions involving:

Water
Wastewater
Soil
Chemical contaminants
Heavy metals
Process materials
Waste streams
Microorganisms
Unknown contamination

Laboratory testing may support environmental monitoring, process investigation, contamination
assessment, and appropriate compliance-related programs.

Pharmaceutical Research & Development

Investigate Why Environmental Results Changed

An environmental result can change because of:

Process changes
Raw materials
Water sources
Waste streams
Equipment
Environmental conditions
Sampling location
Microorganisms
Chemical contamination

When a result changes unexpectedly, comparing current conditions with historical or reference
samples can help determine where meaningful differences exist.

Comparing Environmental Samples

Comparative testing can be particularly useful when organizations have:

A suspected contamination source
An unaffected reference location
Historical samples or data
Upstream and downstream samples
Multiple process streams
Different groundwater locations
Different soil locations

A comparison might follow:

Potential Source
vs.
Affected Location
vs.
Background / Reference Location

The analytical strategy can then focus on similarities and differences relevant to the
contamination question.

PFAS Contamination Investigation

A PFAS result may raise additional questions beyond concentration alone.

Organizations may need to understand:

Which samples are affected?
Is contamination localized or more widespread?
Do concentrations differ by location?
Could a particular process or source be involved?
How do results compare over time?

Where appropriate, a sampling and analytical strategy can be developed around these
questions.

Water Contamination Investigation

Unexpected water contamination may require evaluation of several potential sources.

An investigation may involve:

Unexpected Water Result

↓
Confirm / Characterize the Finding
↓
Review Water Source & System
↓
Identify Potential Environmental / Industrial Inputs
↓
Compare Locations or Sample Types
↓
Perform Targeted Follow-Up Testing

Water data can also be considered alongside soil, wastewater, industrial, or other relevant
environmental samples.

Environmental Research & Development

Environmental organizations, manufacturers, technology developers, and researchers may
require laboratory support for projects beyond routine monitoring.

CMDC Labs can evaluate appropriate R&D projects involving:

Environmental technologies
Water-treatment research
Contamination studies
Comparative environmental studies
Analytical method development
Materials investigation
Microbiology
Chemical analysis
Customized scientific research

Method and sample-preparation requirements depend on the material and intended application.

Analytical Method Development for Environmental Projects

New contaminants, unusual sample matrices, or specialized environmental questions may
require analytical approaches beyond existing routine methods.

Method-development projects may involve:

Defining the target
Selecting the analytical technique
Sample preparation
Extraction
Separation
Detection
Calibration
Controls
Matrix interference
Reproducibility

The method should ultimately be appropriate for both the environmental matrix and intended
use of the data.

Scientific Consulting for Environmental Projects

Sometimes an organization has an environmental problem but does not yet know what
laboratory testing will provide useful information.

Scientific consulting can help evaluate:

Existing environmental results
Potential contamination sources
Sampling strategy
Analytical methods
PFAS questions
Water-quality concerns
Industrial contamination
Unexpected findings
Comparative sample design
Follow-up investigation

Where appropriate, the resulting scientific plan can connect directly to available CMDC Labs
laboratory resources.

Quality & Regulatory Support

Environmental laboratory data may be generated for different purposes.

Projects can support:

Environmental monitoring
Water-quality programs
Industrial investigations
Contamination assessment
Process monitoring
Internal quality programs
Compliance-related testing
Research

The intended use of the data should be established before testing begins because it can
influence method selection, documentation, reporting, and other project requirements.

Laboratory Capabilities for Environmental Projects

Environmental investigations may draw upon several CMDC Labs scientific disciplines.

Water & Environmental Science

Drinking water, groundwater, wastewater, environmental water, PFAS, contaminants, and
appropriate environmental matrices.

Analytical Chemistry

Chromatography, spectroscopy, chemical analysis, and contaminant characterization.

Elemental Analysis

ICP-MS and heavy-metal analysis for appropriate environmental samples.

Microbiology

Water microbiology, microbial identification, enumeration, environmental monitoring, and
contamination investigation.

Materials Characterization

Microscopy, spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and other approaches for appropriate unknown
materials or environmental residues.

Scientific Troubleshooting

Multidisciplinary investigation of unexpected environmental results, contamination, and potential
source pathways.

Connecting Environmental Evidence

Environmental investigations can become more informative when several evidence streams are
considered together.

For example:

Unexpected Water Contaminant
●

Wastewater Results
●
Soil Analysis
●
Potential Source Samples
●
Historical / Background Data
↓
Identify Patterns
↓
Develop Source Hypotheses
↓
Perform Targeted Follow-Up Testing

This does not automatically establish causation, but it can help organizations determine which
explanations deserve further investigation.

A Connected Scientific Pathway for Environmental Investigation

A contamination project may progress through:

Environmental Concern
↓
Sampling
↓

Initial Laboratory Analysis
↓
Contaminant Identification / Quantification
↓
Compare Locations & Potential Sources
↓
Develop Scientific Hypotheses
↓
Targeted Follow-Up Testing
↓
Monitoring / Corrective Activities
↓
Verification Testing
A monitoring program may instead follow:
Define Environmental Question
↓
Develop Sampling Strategy
↓
Establish Analytical Methods
↓
Collect Baseline Data
↓
Ongoing Monitoring

↓
Identify Changes
↓
Investigate Unexpected Results
↓
Adjust Monitoring as Needed

The appropriate pathway depends on the environmental question and intended use of the data.

Have an Environmental Problem Rather Than a Defined Test?

You do not need to determine the laboratory method before contacting CMDC Labs.

Tell us:

What environmental matrix is involved?
What contamination or change are you observing?
Is the contaminant known?
Where were the samples collected?
Are multiple locations affected?
Do you have historical or background data?
Are potential source samples available?
What testing has already been performed?
How will the resulting data be used?

CMDC Labs can evaluate the question and determine which available scientific resources may
be appropriate.

Already Know What Environmental Testing You Need?

If your project already has a defined analyte, contaminant, method, sample type, standard, or
testing requirement, proceed directly to the appropriate laboratory service.

Scientific Support Beyond Routine Environmental Testing

Environmental science connects water, soil, chemistry, microbiology, industrial processes, contaminants, analytical methods, monitoring, and regulatory requirements.

When an environmental problem crosses these areas, a single analytical result may provide only part of the scientific picture.

CMDC Labs’ Scientific Solutions approach connects appropriate laboratory resources around the underlying question—helping organizations move from:

detection → characterization → investigation → evidence → better-informed action.