2024 California Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program Conference

Meet the 2024 ELAP Conference Steering Committee

Geraldine Gonzales – West County Wastewater District

Geraldine Gonzales, Laboratory Manager for West County Wastewater in Richmond, California, began her education in the Philippines as a Biology major. She continued her studies in New Jersey, changing her major and earning her degree in Chemistry.

Geraldine’s first lab experience was as a college student intern. After earning her degree, she was hired into a permanent position as a Laboratory Technician and performed wet chemistry in a commercial laboratory.

In 2000, Geraldine moved to California and began working for Rhodia, Inc., a Sulphuric Acid plant. Her transition to work in the wastewater industry started in 2002 when she was hired as a Laboratory Technician for West County Wastewater. Over the years, the position was reclassified to Laboratory Analyst.

In 2019, Geraldine was promoted to her current position of Laboratory Manager. She currently leads a small laboratory team of three and mentors the lab’s first West County Wastewater intern.

Heidi Birdsell – Dublin San Ramon Services District

Heidi Birdsell, Senior Quality Assurance Chemist at Dublin San Ramon Services District, has over 18 years of experience in environmental analysis. She holds a CWEA Laboratory Analyst Grade 4 certificate and embodies a commitment to excellence and innovation.

With a passion for ensuring the highest standards of quality and accuracy, Heidi has played a pivotal role in bringing her organization to TNI-2 compliance. Her expertise and dedication contribute significantly to the continual evolution and improvement of DSRSD laboratory practices.

As a member of the ELAPCon 2024 Steering Committee, Heidi is excited to collaborate with fellow professionals to explore new frontiers, share insights, and shape the future of environmental science at the upcoming conference!

Anthony Rattonetti - San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, Southeast Laboratory

He is a graduate of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. He has been active in environmental analysis since 1971, working in the University of Illinois at the Illinois State Water Survey. From there he worked for a manufacturer of scientific instruments and later was an independent consultant. His clients included environmental, industrial, clinical, and pharmaceutical laboratories. He has presented papers at conferences and published papers dealing with metals analyses and other environmental issues. He also conducted quality assurance workshops for the American Chemical Society (ACS) at their national meetings. He is a member of ACS and Society for Applied Spectroscopy.

Currently, he is metals section supervisor at the Southeast Laboratory of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission.