Report on the results of the fifth ICES intercomparison exercise for nutrients in sea water
In these increasingly cost-conscious times, tax payers are
entitled to ask whether their national environmental
research and monitoring programmes are delivering
value for money, and it is understandable and right that
they should. More people than ever are now inclined to
enquire as to the quality of the results of chemical
analyses before using them for their intended purpose,
and 'Quality Assurance' is a phrase on everyone's lips.
It is no secret that marine chemists have generated their
share of random numbers in the past. That said, some of
the techniques in use in environmental analysis twenty
years ago were not sufficiently well developed for their
intended task; for example, the role of contamination and
its influence on these techniques was not fully
appreciated. Nevertheless, today, despite greatly
improved instrumentation and facilities, problems still
can and do occur. The key to solving problems is first to
recognize them and it is in this context that
intercomparison and intercalibration (I/C) exercises have
an important role to play.