Keeping Pace^® with Analytical Services

Earlier this month, my colleague Andy Rezendes and I had the opportunity to host a live webinar titled “Clearing the Air: Decoding State Regulations on Vapor Intrusion.” Our goal was to shed light on the complex, and often fragmented, landscape of Vapor Intrusion (VI) guidance across the United States. Vapor intrusion is a critical issue in environmental due diligence, site remediation, and risk assessment, and understanding how it is regulated across different states is essential for environmental professionals. 

Recently, I had the pleasure of hosting our most recent PFAS Webinar: Biosolids Analysis for PFAS: Challenges, Considerations, and Options. This webinar featured Paul Jackson, Pace® Environmental Compliance and Emerging Contaminants Program Manager, and Nick Nigro, Pace® PFAS Product Manager. The webinar was viewed by hundreds of attendees who asked some insightful questions, both at the end and offline. In this post, I’ll overview what Paul and Nick discussed and recap some of the highlights that might be most useful to our Pace® clients. 

On September 17, EPA issued a press release that included, among other things, an update on the liability issues regarding passive receivers. Since this issue impacts many of our clients, I’ve been getting calls and questions, asking for my perspectives. Now that several weeks have passed, I’ve had time to consider the matter and wanted to provide some encouragement for those clients that qualify as passive receivers of PFAS.

While Joint Commission accreditation lends credibility to a healthcare organization and helps them earn public trust, it also comes with a caveat: regular visits or “surveys” from Joint Commission officials. Since the Joint Commission has no duty to inform the facility of a visit ahead of time, healthcare facilities looking to maintain their accreditation must always be ready. In this post, I’ll share my perspectives on survey readiness and a few best practices from my work with hospitals and compounding pharmacies. 

It Can Happen to Anyone 

As the Pace® Program Manager for Environmental Compliance, I am often asked what PFAS regulatory actions our clients can expect from U.S. EPA. The Spring 2025 Unified Agenda released by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is a good place to begin to answer this question. As expected, several of the agenda items in the latest publication pertain to PFAS, creating a kind of “checklist” for actions to watch and be ready for in the weeks and months ahead.  

If You Didn’t Document It, Did It Really Happen? 

In December 2024, Pace® designated its laboratory in Pennsauken, NJ as a Center of Excellence for Fungal Analysis. Staffed by a team of expert mycologists and led by Dr. Chin Yang and Dr. Ching-Yi Tsai, our new COE provides a wide array of mold and fungal testing and analysis services to support our Building Services clients. In addition, the lab has added new test parameters, such as wood decay analysis. 

As schools across the country gear up for the new academic year, ensuring a safe and healthy learning environment for students and staff is paramount. In school safety discussions, it can be easy to overlook hidden dangers. Among the foremost concerns in today’s schools are the threats posed by Legionella, asbestos, and lead. 

The Hazardous Organic National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (HON Rule) is a pending, yet critical regulation for chemical manufacturing facilities in the United States. To help navigate its complexities, we sat down with Mariah Peronto, Air Program Manager, to answer some of the most pressing questions about the HON Rule. Read on to gain valuable insights and practical advice on how to get ahead.