General information

Institute for Environmental Reference Materials of Ministry of Environmental Protection (abbrev.  IERM), formerly was the Standardization Department of China National Environmental Monitoring Center which was set up in 1981, was established by Ministry of Environmental Protectionof the People’s Republic of China (abbrev. MEP) in 1996. IERM is the only research agency authorized by MEP for developing and producing environmental reference materials. IERM’s primary mission is to promote the traceability and comparability of Chinese environmental monitoring and testing data by developing environmental reference materials and organizing proficiency testing schemes on environmental pollutants’ testing. In accordance with its quality policy which is in the slogan of “scientific honesty, accurate value，excellent efficiency and satisfactory customer”, IERM carries out the research, production and application service of various environmental reference materials following ISO Guides 31, 34 and 35 and ISO/IEC 17025, and provides proficiency testing service for environmental monitoring and relating testing laboratories following ISO/IEC Guide 43.

The collaborative network for characterization of the certified environmental reference materials produced by IERM, which was found in 2001, consists of senior laboratories in testing environmental pollutants across China. The present memberships are National Research Center for Environmental Analysis and Testing, National Research Center for Geoanalysis, Beijing Environmental Protection Monitoring Centre, Shanghai Environmental Monitoring Centre, Tianjin Environmental Monitoring Centre, Jiangsu Province Environmental Monitoring Centre, Guangdong Province Environmental Monitoring Centre, Fujian Province Environmental Monitoring Centre, Anhui Province Environmental Monitoring Centre, Zhejiang Province Environmental Monitoring Centre, Nanjing Environmental Monitoring Centre, Jinan Environmental Monitoring Centre, Ha’erbin Environmental Monitoring Centre, Shenyang Environmental Monitoring Centre, Zhengzhou Environmental Monitoring Centre, Hangzhou Environmental Monitoring Centre, Chengdu Environmental Monitoring Centre and Beijing Pony Testing International Group.

IERM is equipped with three production lines for preparing gaseous, liquid and solid reference materials and nearly 200 sets of advanced measurement instruments and occupancy a workshop of 1000 square meters. So far, 283 kinds of environmental reference materials including water quality, air, soil, industrial solid waste, biological and organic materials have been approved as national certified reference materials by General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of the People’s Republic of China. Because of great achievements on the development of environmental reference materials, IERM has won first-class prize once and third-class prize twice in the National Environmental Science and Technological Development Award, and the Silver Prize once in the State Green Technology and third-class prize once in Environmental Protection Science and Technology Awards.

IERM began to provide its proficiency testing service in 2002. So far, IERM has organized and completed 19 proficiency testing programmes on water, air and soil with more than 2000 participating laboratories. IERM has also provided measurement audit for more than 400 testing laboratories.

Organization

IERM is composed of four divisions, that is, administration and service division, gas division, inorganic division and organic division. IERM also administrate the collaborative network which consists of 18 senior testing laboratories across China.