Water quality assurance rests on information security

Manipulated data

Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) has temporarily suspended water testing in the state laboratory’s water chemistry program. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revoked the lab’s certification. In mid November, 2024 it identified that a senior chemist “manipulated quality control data.” A month later, the investigation identified a second chemist.

CDPHE reports no evidence of acute or imminent threat to public health. Nonetheless, the news causes concern. “The integrity of our laboratory operations is our top priority,” said Dr. Ned Calonge, Chief Medical Officer, in the press release. State health officials said the data problems may impact as many as 3% of the 2,100 public drinking water systems.

The extent of the quality control lapse may be greater. A September, 2024 letter from the EPA to CDPHE, obtained by 9NEWS Investigates, noted that Colorado found problems in testing data dating back five years and said the lab initially noticed quality control problems in June, 2022 but never notified the lab director or the federal agency. The laboratory made no correction at that time.

On the heels of the Colorado incident, Trenton Water Works (TWW) announced on 27 November, 2024 that the utility violated drinking water monitoring requirements in fall, 2023 when it became aware of an employee who was falsifying drinking water data. Since then TWW has implemented additional procedures to comply with the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA); these include utilizing tablets with special software, taking photos of water sampling sites, and pairing water sample collectors with supervisors.

Auditable data

Information security is our top priority at KISTERS. We take pride in implementing the best practices, processes and technologies to keep your data of the highest quality. This ethos is important as labs and water utilities steward community trust. In response to questions of trust in water quality, our software and its development can play a crucial role in rebuilding confidence.

This news highlights the need for stringent water quality data management. We work closely with federal, state and local agencies who integrate laboratory information management systems (LIMS) with KISTERS water quality software. The IT combination allows organizations to secure and rigorously verify results from water testing outsourced to commercial, accredited laboratories. Use metadata management to track the status of time-sensitive and already-in-progress water samples and the labs ordered to analyze them.

From data import through QA/QC and export, the data system automatically tracks every activity and modification to datasets and individual data points. System administrators have granular control over approved software users, access to datasets, and interaction with information. Some end-users may only read or view data. Others can edit, and a manager or two may approve data.

Transparent data

Data confidence arises from more than data control. It also relies on transparency. As users view graphs, a data quality bar displays which, when and why data points have been modified. Administrators can set more advanced change rules to record and show comments, quality flags, data tags, or other contextual information when any data edit occurs. We strive to enable organizations to maintain data integrity while simplifying regulatory compliance.

The software enhances the capacity to perform automated and manual data reviews. Additional functions can alert users — raising awareness of emerging trends of questionable data quality or test results.

As CDPHE addresses these quality control lapses, leveraging robust, integrated data management software can help restore confidence in water quality data and protect public health.