Virginia House Bill 938 became effective July 1, 2026. This key environmental law requires industrial users discharging into Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTWs) to conduct quarterly PFAS monitoring for an initial year and provide laboratory results to their POTW no later than 30 days after receiving them. POTWs must then report those results to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality on a quarterly basis.
Whether you oversee a municipal pretreatment program or operate an affected industrial facility, SGS can help you establish a practical, repeatable PFAS testing program aligned with EPA Method 1633/1633A, the method identified in Virginia law for this monitoring. Reports must include all PFAS analytes measured by the applicable method.
Key Requirements
- Industrial Monitoring: Facilities (such as textile mills, industrial laundries, semiconductor manufacturers, and electroplaters) must report quarterly PFAS discharge results for one year.
- Testing Frequency: If PFAS is found below the method detection level for the first two quarters, monitoring can be discontinued. If detected above limits, quarterly reporting must continue.
- State Reporting: POTWs must pass these monitoring results on a quarterly basis directly to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).
- Notification: POTWs were directed to notify affected industrial users of these initial monitoring requirements within 30 days of the bill taking effect.
Plan Your Quarterly Program
For industrial users, results below the method detection level during the first two quarters may allow the POTW to discontinue the remaining initial quarterly monitoring. If PFAS is detected above the method detection limit, quarterly monitoring continues. However, the POTW may later reduce monitoring frequency to annually after at least two consecutive quarters with results below the method detection level.
Why SGS?
- Method 1633 expertise: SGS was selected to help develop and validate EPA Method 1633. EPA Method 1633A covers 40 PFAS in wastewater and other environmental matrices and uses isotope-dilution LC-MS/MS with method-defined quality-control procedures.
- Scalable North American capacity: SGS PFAS services are supported by a network of 10 North American laboratories with combined capacity exceeding 100,000 analyses annually, along with rush capacity and multiple laboratory locations.
- Wastewater experience: SGS has supported state and nationwide wastewater monitoring programs and has commercial PFAS analytical experience dating to 2003.
- Broad quality systems: The SGS PFAS network maintains qualifications and accreditations under applicable systems including ISO 17025, DoD and DOE Quality Systems Manual requirements, UCMR 5 and state-level programs.
- Program support beyond the analysis: SGS can support PFAS-free sampling supplies, sample-delivery logistics, electronic chain of custody and online access to laboratory data—helping your team manage recurring quarterly events more consistently.
Get Started with SGS
Request a Virginia PFAS Monitoring Planning Call and contact our PFAS experts to discuss your expected sample volume, monitoring schedule, analytical scope, sampling supplies, and reporting needs.
Email [email protected] or visit env.sgs.com/services/pfas-analysis/