Meteorology, ASTM, and Voluntary Consensus Standards

ASTM International offers a structured, consensus-based approach for developing standardized and internationally recognized test methods, practices and guidelines for a wide range of industries and stakeholders including those interested in meteorology. This presentation provides an overview of ASTM including history, goals, membership, the ASTM consensus process, relevance to stakeholders and society. A discussion on the importance of standards with respect to fulfilling federal United States requirements under the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NATTA) and other governmental requirements will be covered. The presentation will include information on Committee D22 (Air Quality) with particular emphasis on subcommittee D22.11 (Meteorology). A vision for future activity within this subcommittee and relevance to air monitoring needs will be presented. This will include a brief discussion on initiatives to craft standards for both low cost meteorological sensors and portable meteorological stations as well as the need for modeling standards. The presentation will conclude with information on the relevance of membership and importance of contributions from members of the meteorological community.