27 Analytical Laboratories from eleven EU Member States and two non-EU countries have
participated in a technical on-site event during which sampling and analytical methodologies for
chemical monitoring according to proposed WFD provisions have been compared. Coordination of the
project was provided by the European Commission Joint Research Centre in collaboration with the
Italian Water Research Institute, the Hungarian Ministry of Environment and Water and the Serbian
Ministry for Environment and Spatial Planning. The Laboratories had been invited to take samples
from a major European river according to their standard protocols and to analyse them for PAHs,
PBDE and Nonyl-, Octylphenol.
It was shown that even some of the most challenging WFD priority substances, selected on purpose for
this exercise, can be measured at WFD relevant concentrations (0.3 x EQS) with methods currently
applied in Member States. Depending on the analyte group, the obtained results were not within
proposed data quality limits for some participants and therefore further development of methods and
harmonisations of efforts is suggested.JRC.H.5 - Rural, water and ecosystem resource
