We’re rounding out our Earth Week with some environmental science at the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill.
Water sampling is an integral part of our work at the Solid Waste Division. In addition to ensuring we meet our regulatory requirements, water sampling also helps us protect human health and the environment.
The Water Sampling Crew begins each day by preparing their equipment. That includes giving the instruments a good clean to ensure samples collected accurately reflect what’s coming out of the ground. Equipment is then loaded into a specially-designed truck that has all the equipment the crew needs to complete their work. Once everything is ready, the crew heads out into the field to collect samples and record data.
The field crew takes typical field parameter data including pH, Oxidation-Reduction Potential, Dissolved Oxygen, Specific Conductivity and turbidity.
It is imperative that the crew collects representative and accurate data because the results are compared to past results and regulatory requirements. This helps engineers at the Solid Waste Division determine the effectiveness of control systems currently in place, as well as providing critical data for future planning.
Once the data is collected, it is recorded and then sent to the King County Environmental Lab in Seattle to be analyzed. Results are also compiled in quarterly and annual reports.
And it’s not just at the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill, water sampling is conducted at all division sites, including transfer stations and closed landfills.
Interest in learning more about our work? Visit our website, or watch the video above to get an overview of the water sampling crew in action.