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SURF 34 :: Sustainable Remediation in a Changing Landscape
Presentation summaries for SURF 34 will be posted when available.
Presentation summaries for SURF 34 will be posted when available.
Greener Cleanup Engines for Change in Place: Policy, Tools, Contracts, and Experience
Carlos Pachon, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Since its release in late 2013, use of the ASTM Standard Guide for Greener Cleanups has expanded across all major cleanup programs. Carlos' presentation will focus on recent USEPA developments related to the Standard, including references to it in the Superfund guidance "Consideration of Greener Cleanup Activities in the Superfund Cleanup Process" and the open Superfund Remediation Environmental Services contract solicitation and free access to the guide for a limited period. The findings of a recent internal USEPA survey on greener cleanups will be explored. Over 460 survey responses were received from personnel across the U.S. Carlos will discuss possible communication and training needs for all audiences going forward.
Development of a Sustainability Framework for the Portland Harbor Superfund Site and Implications for Future Large Sediment Sites
Amanda McNally, AECOM
It is increasingly recognized that remediation and restoration approaches should be designed with final site uses in mind. The USEPA encourages the consideration of reasonably anticipated future land use when carrying out response actions; it has overseen response actions that protect human health and the environment and allow sites to be reused safely and productively. The bulk of such work has focused on land-based brownfield regeneration, but sediment remediation should follow a similar strategy. Sustainable remediation strategies should be informed not only by considerations of regulatory compliance but also by future river system visions based upon stakeholder goals, values and expectations. Establishing this vision requires input from multiple stakeholders and a transparent consideration of trade-offs not only of the values of a diverse community but also of the equitable distribution of risks and benefits of remedial actions and outcomes.
Brownfields Revitalization: Opportunities for Sustainable Cleanup and Reuse
Patricia Overmeyer, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Brownfield revitalization can support community efforts to become more resilient to climate change impacts by incorporating adaptation and mitigation strategies throughout the brownfield cleanup and redevelopment process. EPA's Brownfields and Land Revitalization Program encourages communities to think about climate adaptation, mitigation, and resiliency in the context of brownfield cleanup and redevelopment. This includes consideration of projected climate change when performing brownfield site assessments, evaluating cleanup alternatives, and planning for redevelopment. Early evaluation facilitates forward-looking decisions related to land use, zoning, and building codes that increase resiliency. Communities are also encouraged to reduce emissions through sustainable mitigation throughout the cleanup and redevelopment of brownfield sites and into their ultimate reuse. This presentation will discuss the opportunities provided by brownfields redevelopment decisions to implement greener and more sustainable cleanups and to adapt more sustainable and resilient reuse alternatives.
The In-Situ Solar Powered Biogeochemical Reactor: How Sustainable Thinking Can Improve Remediation Technology
Paul Favara, CH2M
In the ramp-up to integrating sustainability into remediation, a key industry focus area has been to reduce the environmental footprint of treatment processes. In-situ treatment processes for chlorinated organics are considered inherently sustainable because they typically don't require continuous use of energy to provide effective treatment. However, a closer inspection of the burdens related to some remediation substrates, and ineffectiveness of some approaches, shows there is room for improvement.
A team of engineers challenged themselves to improve on a technology that was already considered sustainable. The result was an in-situ solar/wind-powered subgrade biogeochemical reactor (iSBGR), a unique application of the enhanced reductive dechlorination (ERD) technology that has been developed to treat chlorinated volatile organic compounds (CVOCs) in soil and groundwater. In its simplest configuration, soil above a groundwater hot spot is excavated and backfilled with a mixture of locally available farm waste and non-refined material. A solar or wind-powered extraction well is placed near the backfilled area and extracts groundwater, which is conveyed to a distribution network above the iSBGR backfill treatment media. High levels of dissolved organic carbon are incorporated into the groundwater system as the extracted groundwater percolates through the organic-rich material within the iSBGR. The extraction and reinfiltration of groundwater creates a recirculation system that provides for long-term organic carbon delivery. Enhanced groundwater pore-volume exchange created by groundwater recirculation results in faster treatment times compared to typical "inject and drift" treatment approaches. A layer of abiotic treatment material, such as pyrite or magnetite, can be placed within the backfill to provide treatment of chlorinated organics in the groundwater that may be more amendable to abiotic treatment.
Total molar concentration reductions of chlorinated ethenes as high as 99 percent have been observed at source area treatment sites presented in this study. The observed concentration reductions, biogeochemical and biological indicator data, and observed first-order decay rates will be presented. Additionally, lessons learned will be presented regarding the process used to select reagent doses, as well as usefulness of specific types of data collected for evaluation of biotic and abiotic degradation at these sites.
Technical Innovations for Cost-Effective Groundwater Monitoring
Haruko Wainwright, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
This presentation will describe an innovative approach for sustainable and cost-effective groundwater monitoring. This approach takes advantage of recent advances in various technologies: (1) in situ autonomous sensors, (2) big data analytics, and (3) parallel high-performance computing for flow and reactive transport modeling. In-situ sensors are used to continuously measure the key variables that control contaminant plume mobility and its spatial and temporal distribution (e.g., pH, redox potential, electrical conductivity, groundwater level). Coupled with a limited number of groundwater sampling, the data analytics methods – data mining and machine learning – allow us to identify and quantify the correlations between the in-situ measured variables and contaminant concentrations and to detect any significant changes associated with the plume mobility. In addition, the state-of-art parallel numerical flow and reactive transport simulator, Amanzi, provides a physical and mechanistic understanding of the system behavior and predicts the long-term plume migration and distribution for optimizing and adapting the monitoring strategies. Amanzi was developed in the Advanced Simulation Capability for Environmental Management (ASCEM) program for the DOE Office of Environmental Management. Such modeling is critical, particularly for assessing the impact of climate change and associated hydrological shifts. Although this approach does not intend to eliminate groundwater sampling and analysis entirely, it is expected to significantly reduce the sampling frequency and associated cost. In addition, the real-time information on plume mobility serves as an early warning system, improving the resiliency of contaminated or potentially contaminated sites. This approach was demonstrated at the Savannah River Site (SRS) F-Area, where groundwater is contaminated by various radionuclides, including uranium, tritium and technetium.
A New Way of Investigating Sites: Smart Characterization
Patrick Curry, ARCADIS
It is time to leave behind monitoring wells, the original site characterization tools, and begin investigating sites differently. Traditional site investigation methods rely on a linear process of iterative work plans, soil and groundwater sampling, geologic and hydrogeologic testing, analysis of data, and reporting. Monitoring wells are the primary tool of a traditional site investigation, but conventional monitoring wells simply provide a transmissivity-weighted average dissolved-phase concentration that reflects the influence of the most permeable segments within the screened interval. The data from monitoring wells provide little useful information on the distribution of contaminant storage and transport zones in the aquifer, mass transfer mechanisms, or mass flux - all of which are necessary to design effective remediation.
Stated simply, Smart Characterization methods should be used in place of monitoring wells during the characterization phase. Smart Characterization methods integrate dynamic, real-time, high-density soil and groundwater sampling with hydrostratigraphic interpretations and permeability mapping in three-dimensions. By correlating high-resolution concentration data with hydrostratigraphy and permeability data, it is possible to map and distinguish contaminant mass transport zones from mass storage zones. This approach enables real-time classification of the scales of variability that control mass transport in the source and distal segments of groundwater plumes. This mass flux-based perspective is the foundation of the Smart Characterization approach. Dynamic implementation and real-time decision-making reduces the investigation costs and impacts while providing more robust conceptual site models (CSMs).
This presentation will offer some examples where Smart Characterization significantly provided a far more accurate CSM and reduced the overall cost, environmental impacts and liability over the life cycle of projects. Finally, this presentation will address the synergies of Smart Characterization and sustainable remediation, highlighting the importance of continued adaptation of innovative scientific methids to maintain a sustainable remediation approach to impacted sites.
Time and Technology
Paul Hadley, Retired - California Department of Toxic Substances Control
The remediation industry has been implementing cleanup technologies since at least the early 1980s and sometimes continuously since that time at specific sites. Along the way, several eye-opening developments, studies and reports have surprised the industry with objective and candid input concerning the performance and effects of technology, particularly for groundwater cleanups. Throughout this same three-decade-long timeframe, there have been a number of non-technology developments concerning other equally important areas of remediation (cleanup policy, risk assessment, sampling, and site assessment, to name a few) that have struggled to find acceptance despite offering clear and superior advantages to the status quo. As a result, the prolonged and ineffective use of remediation technology continues in many cases. This presentation will offer some examples where 'champions' have made the effort to improve cleanups with a range of outcomes – and a range of timeframes for their efforts. The presentation will also identify how SURF might consider looking at cleanups more strategically along the timeline of the expected progression of results for groundwater cleanups when engaging the broader remediation industry about sustainability.
Implications of Climate Change in Contaminated Site Remediation
Lara J. Hansen (EcoAdapt)
The effects of climate change are already being manifest and will continue to have consequence for centuries to come. Yet actions we take every day often fail to evaluate and integrate those effects, potentially undermining the efficacy of our efforts. Contaminated site remediation is no exception. In order for site remediation efforts to be sustainable and successful over the long term, it is vital that the implications of climate change be evaluated and remediation strategies be developed that respond to and prepare for those effects. This includes identifying factors such as sea-level rise that may affect long-term site suitability; considering how increasing temperature, hydrological shifts or a host of other factors may affect the toxicity of site contaminants; or determining what flora and fauna will be supported at a site in the future due to shifting climatic conditions. There are emerging examples of how these factors are being considered, including tools and methodologies, that could be integrated more broadly to create better long-term outcomes for contaminated site remediation efforts.
Lara Hansen thinks climate change is everybody's problem and she wishes someone would bother to do something about it. Her desire for action led her to co-create EcoAdapt with a team of similarly inclined folks in 2008. She serves this fine organization as Executive Director and Chief Scientist. She is co-author and editor of one of the earliest texts on the issue of natural system adaptation to climate change, "Buying Time: A User's Manual for Building Resistance and Resilience to Climate Change in Natural Systems," as well as co-author of one of the newer books on adaptation, "Climate Savvy: Adapting Conservation and Resource Management to a Changing World." The team that created these books created an engaged stakeholder process (first known as Climate Camp; now known as Awareness to Action Workshops) to help everyone create adaptation strategies applicable to their work. Lara serves on the unfairly maligned, vitally important Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, is a Switzer Environmental Fellow and a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Bronze Medalist. Prior to creating EcoAdapt, she was the Chief Climate Change Scientist for the World Wildlife Fund, creating their international Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Program, which she led from 2001-2008, and a Research Ecologist with the Environmental Protection Agency from 1998-2001. Because she's an optimist, she assumes we'll get our acts together on climate change--who would want the alternative?
Adaptation of Superfund Remediation to Climate Change
Anne Dailey (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
In this presentation, Anne will provide an overview of climate change vulnerability analyses to the EPA's Superfund program, as well as identify potential adaptation measures that could be incorporated to increase the resiliency of cleanups. In some circumstances, climate change may result in vulnerabilities of the protectiveness of contaminated site remedies. The presentation will focus on the understanding of such vulnerabilities and the means of achieving increased remedy resilience through adaptation measures. The following topics will be addressed: (1) brief synopsis of Federal and EPA climate change issues, directives, and adaptive planning; (2) consideration of potential remedy vulnerabilities throughout the Superfund process and adaptation approaches to increase remedy resilience; (3) an awareness of existing and newly developed resources available to consider when addressing climate impacts at Superfund sites; and (4) a regional case study of adaptation at a Superfund site that has been recently affected by a major weather event.
Anne Dailey is a Senior Environmental Scientist with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology Innovation. Among other duties, Anne co-led development of EPA's recently issued series of Superfund climate change adaptation technical fact sheets. In addition to climate change adaptation, Anne also works on groundwater issues and is the Superfund Completions Coordinator and Superfund Tribal Coordinator. Prior to joining EPA Headquarters four years ago, Anne worked for more than 20 years in EPA Region 10 (Seattle) in both the Superfund and Water programs. In Region 10, she was a Superfund Remedial Project Manager for more than a decade and worked on a broad array of remediation challenges. Anne has a Bachelor of Science in Geology and a Master's of Science in Oceanography from the University of Washington.
USGBC Resilience Tool Development
Heather Rosenberg (U.S. Green Building Council)
Randy Britt (Parsons)
Disasters like Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy reveal in stark images how vulnerable we are. From extreme weather events to earthquakes to power outages, even our greenest buildings may be vulnerable. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) estimates that every $1 spent on preparedness is worth $4 in recovery, and others put that ratio closer to 1:20. Scientists tell us that disasters are not only inevitable, they are predictable. Resilience can be defined as the ability of people, organizations, and communities to rebound to a position of strength and health following shocks and stressors. The green building community can play a role in promoting resilience. A new field of tools is emerging that help projects become resilient to disasters, and improve quality of life now. The USGBC's Los Angeles Chapter is leading the development of a guide for implementing resilience practices in an integrative way within existing facilities. The guide will help organizations evaluate risks, build community, and manage for change in ways that make sense for the bottom line and the public good. Heather will introduce participants to the challenges of dealing with risk and uncertainty, and discuss solutions that provide both short and long term benefits.
Environmental and external shocks and stressors have also had a devastating impact on our infrastructure. In addition to threats from extreme weather and seismic activity, the aging global infrastructure is also vulnerable to terrorism, cybersecurity breaches, and brushfires. Randy will offer participants information that will help to identify infrastructure resilience needs and assist in the development of resiliency plans implementation strategies. In addition, he will provide the link to resilience in buildings and infrastructure to the impact on remediation projects, and the potential for external shocks and stressors to create environmental issues.
Heather Rosenberg was awarded the USGBC Ginsberg Sustainability Fellowship for 2014-2015 to provide thought leadership on issues of social equity in the built environment. She is currently spearheading the effort with USGBC-LA to develop the Los Angeles Resilience Initiative, a process-based framework for implementing an integrated approach to resilience that addresses built, natural, social and economic systems in existing buildings and new construction. Trained in both ecology and community development, she has worked on the leading edge of sustainability for more than a decade. She has helped shape policy at the city, state and national level, including work on strategic plans, Climate Action Plans, and the analytical framework for LEED. Heather is co-author of the USGBC report "Social Equity in the Built Environment," co-authored the core curriculum for USGBC's Green Building and LEED Core Concepts Guide, and writes and blogs extensively on issues of social equity and resilience. She serves on the City of Los Angeles Innovation and Performance Commission and the USGBC Task Forces on Social Equity and Resilience.
Randy Britt, a LEED-accredited professional, is the Director of Sustainability for Parsons. He has more than 30 years of experience leading the development of sustainability programs and projects for buildings in educational, healthcare, and local government sectors, as well as renewable energy projects for utilities and energy markets. Since joining Parsons in 2010, he has been instrumental in furthering the corporation's sustainability capacity and market development. Randy is the Chair of Parsons' Sustainability Working Group, and he plays a key role in the publication of the corporation's annual corporate social responsibility report. He was recently awarded the Construction Management Association of America's Special Award for Sustainability and Resilience, recognizing his efforts to raise the level of awareness of the need for sustainability and resilience in the construction management industry.
A Framework for Climate Change Resiliency Assessments
P. Brandt Butler (AECOM)
Climate change is acutely impacting municipalities and the private sector along U.S. coastlines and rivers. The technical practices for evaluating climate change resiliency and adaptation options are well established. Contaminated lands in these regions are also vulnerable to extreme weather, sea-level rise, and climate change. These changes are now affecting the Virginia, Florida, and Gulf shorelines. The authors will present a framework for assessing the risks, options, and implementation strategy for addressing climate change that are applicable to remediation sites. The framework uses a six-step process that consists of scoping, screening risk to identify the most vulnerable infrastructure, applying current science to evaluate climate change scenarios and time frames, assessing risks to identify at risk infrastructure, evaluating and prioritizing resiliency options, and implementing appropriate measures. A case study will be presented.
Paul Brandt Butler is a Principal Engineer and Director of the Global Green and Sustainable Remediation Practice at AECOM. Brandt has over 39 years of experience as an Environmental Engineer and Program Manager supporting the petrochemicals and petroleum industries. Most recently, his responsibilities have included remediation program management; remedial action selection; and sustainable remediation, including the impact of climate change on remediation.
Introduction of the 2016 SURF Board of Trustees
Maile Smith (Northgate Environmental Management and SURF)
Maile will introduce the results of the 2016 election for the Board of Trustees that were announced at the end of January. For a list of current and past Board members, click here.
Maile Smith is a Principal Geologist at Northgate Environmental Management with 16 years of experience in all aspects of environmental characterization, restoration, and risk management. She manages interdisciplinary projects and multi-site remedial programs, and has particular expertise in in-situ remediation, long-term monitoring and optimization, and site closure strategies. Maile was a founding Board member and the 2015 President of SURF. She also serves as Northgate's corporate Sustainability Officer, in which she evaluates and incorporates sustainability principles into Northgate projects and procurements, including sustainability and resource evaluations, water reuse/recycling, and productive public involvement and outreach.
SURF Planning
John Simon, Gnarus Advisors and SURF
Barbara Maco, Wactor & Wick and SURF
John and Barbara will discuss the results of a recent SURF member survey aimed to obtain input from membership about the future activities and focus of SURF.
John Simon is Editor-in-Chief of the Remediation Journal and a Director at Gnarus Advisors located in Arlington, Virginia. John has served in numerous management positions, including Executive Vice President and a U.S. board member of an international consulting firm. He has reviewed and facilitated the publication of six SURF articles in the Remediation Journal, including the SURF White Paper. John leads the ASTM Greener Cleanups Task Group and was also a member of the ASTM Integrating Sustainable Objectives into Cleanup Task Group. He is a frequent speaker and author on topics related to sustainable remediation.
Barbara Maco is the Sustainability Director for Wactor & Wick LLP Environmental Lawyers. She support clients with projects focused on sustainable remediation, redevelopment, and renewable energy generation on impaired lands. At the U.S. EPA, Barbara served as a Senior Remedial Project Manager and facilitated the first EPA Greener Cleanup Memorandum of Understanding with a military service. Barbara has been active in SURF since 2013, serving on the Case Study Initiative Committee, coordinating the submittal of the first two case studies. At the Third International Sustainable Remediation Forum, Barbara developed and chaired a workshop on optimal ways to document and communicate the value of sustainable remediation to key stakeholders. She's also a member of the Scientific Committee for the 4th Sustainable Remediation Conference to be held in April 2016. Barbara earned a BA degree in Ecological Studies and an MBA in Sustainable Management.
Panel Discussion: Are You Ready for Your Next Disaster?
Samuel Unger (Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board)
Bill Wick (Wactor & Wick)
Greg Schilz (JLT Specialty USA)
Doug Hileman (Douglas Hileman Consulting, LLC)
This panel will explore the legal and insurance implications of climate change impacts on contaminated sites, as well as the regulatory and risk management challenges associated with climate variability on completed or future remediation projects. Panelists will touch on the roles that auditing and reporting play in transparency and risk management, and how climate change concerns have already impacted projects from legal, insurance, and policy perspectives.
Bill Wick's practice is devoted exclusively to environmental counseling and litigation, with a focus on assisting clients with all issues relating to contaminated land. Bill has more than 38 years of experience in prosecuting, defending, and serving as an expert witness in environmental cases, and in working with clients and regulatory agencies on site investigations, cleanups, enforcement, and regulatory matters. He was an enforcement attorney with the U.S. EPA for 13 years, and developed enforcement policy and supervised the 30 attorneys enforcing CERCLA, RCRA and TSCA in Arizona, Nevada, California, and Hawaii. Bill is the author of chapters in two different treatises on hazardous site cleanup. In 2015, he was selected as one of the Best Lawyers in America in Environmental Law by his peers.
Greg Schilz is an Executive Vice President and the JLT USA Environmental Leader. He works with PE firms with innovative solutions to assist in the acquisition and/or disposition process. Prior to joining JLT Specialty USA, he was a Managing Director at Aon Risk Solutions since 2006, where he was the national sales leader for the Aon Environmental Services Group and managed the West Region Environmental Practice. Greg received a B.S. in Business Administration from San Francisco State University.
Doug Hileman has 35 years of experience in the environmental, safety, sustainability and auditing fields. He has reviewed environmental liabilities for financial audits and conducted RI/FS studies. He launched his firm eight years ago, after six years at PricewaterhouseCoopers. His firm has audit reports on file at the SEC for conflict minerals, and routinely works with senior management. Doug is active in the Institute of Internal Auditors. He is a Chemical Engineer and MBA and holds certifications as a P.E., Certified Risk Management Assurance (CRMA), and Certified Professional Environmental Auditor (CPEA).
Sustainability and Resilience Converge
Nurit Katz (University of California – Los Angeles)
John Onderdonk (California Institute of Technology)
This presentation will explore the intersection of sustainability and resilience through the case studies of UCLA and Caltech. Nurit and John will explore through dialog the role universities can play as living laboratories for sustainability and resilience, and how higher education and cities are collaborating in regional planning. They will discuss climate and resilience planning in a complex laboratory environment and past remediation challenges, including the major flood on UCLA's campus in 2014.
As UCLA's first Chief Sustainability Officer, Nurit Katz is working to foster partnerships among academic, research, and operational departments to facilitate creating a world-class living laboratory for sustainability at UCLA. As Executive Officer for UCLA Facilities Management, Nurit provides strategy support to make the university more operationally efficient and coordinates with Emergency Management on resilience planning. Facilities Management provides energy to the campus through a highly efficient cogeneration plant, as well as managing landscaping, renovations, operations, and maintenance. Nurit is also an Instructor for UCLA Extension's Sustainability Certificate Program. Her course Principles of Sustainability I was included in LA Weekly's Best of LA 2012 as one of the 10 Best Classes in Los Angeles. Nurit was recently recognized as one of the top 100 business trailblazers in the Women Worth Watching 2015 issue of Profiles in Diversity Journal. She serves on the Executive Committee of the Luskin Center for Innovation and on the Advisory Boards of the Los Angeles Sustainable Business Council and the Southern California Green Business Council as well as the Steering Committee for the USGBC Resilience LA Initiative, the Built Environment Advisory Board for the LA Cleantech Incubator, and the leadership team for Path to Positive LA.
John Onderdonk serves as the Director of Sustainability Programs at the California Institute of Technology where he is responsible for strategic planning to improve environmental performance in the areas of energy, climate, water, waste, supply chain, transportation and building infrastructure. At Caltech, John has advised senior administrators on the installation of 3MW of fuel cell and 1.3MW of photovoltaic capacity. He has supervised the execution of a $15M energy efficiency fund and has served as the lead sustainability advisor for nine capital building projects totaling approximately $300M in construction costs. John is also the Primary Account Representative for the Institute's compliance with the California carbon cap-and-trade regulation AB 32. Prior to joining Caltech, John practiced environmental risk management serving as the Southwest Regional Manager for AIG Environmental where he developed liability transfer programs for corporate and brownfield redevelopment clients. He has also worked as an environmental consultant helping clients integrate sustainability into their business practices and proactively address environmental regulations. John was recognized as the 2013 California Higher Education Sustainability Officer of the Year. He is a member of the California 21st Senate District's Sustainability Advisory Council and serves on the Dean's Advisory Council at the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management and the Board of Directors of the University of Oregon Alumni Association.
Incorporating Climate Change Adaptation into Remediation Design and Implementation
Shannon O'Connell and Carrie Crozier (Parsons)
There has been a growing movement within the environmental industry to develop more sustainable approaches in environmental remediation. These have generally included carbon footprint analysis, life cycle assessment, and best management practices to reduce the overall net environmental, social, and economic impacts of investigation and remediation activities. One of the foundational reasons net environmental impacts are currently evaluated is to identify and, subsequently, reduce contributions to climate change, primarily greenhouse gas emissions. While this trend toward sustainability and reduction in impact to the global environment is both important and admirable, the approach to remediation design and long-term planning now needs to evolve further to better incorporate climate resilience into sustainable remediation design and implementation: designing remediation solutions that account for the projected impacts of climate change, as well as have the capacity to adapt to changing conditions. As a global population, we are now beyond the point of being able to prevent climate change and instead need to plan for adapting to it. In remediation, the effects of climate change create both risks and opportunities which should be considered during remedial design and long-term planning. Responsible parties may see the push for - and management of - these considerations through their internal corporate risk management. Shannon and Carrie will propose a simple framework for climate adaptation and resilience evaluations and plan development for remediation projects.
Shannon O'Connell, is the Operations Manager for the Industrial Group of Parsons in Pasadena, California. Her technical interests include sustainable remediation, renewable energy, and climate change resilience. Shannon received her BS in Environmental Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Carrie Crozier is a Senior Geologist at Parsons and a registered Professional Geologist in the State of California. Early in her career, she managed a portfolio of retail gas station remediation sites, and acted as an office sustainability officer. She has merged these two roles to provide sustainable remediation services at sites with complex multiparty commingled plumes. Her primary role is providing technical guidance for sites seeking risk-based closure. She also serves as a project manager for Parsons brownfields to brightfields initiative, which seeks to generate sustainable energy at sites undergoing remediation and redevelopment.
Applications for Microbial Extracts to Address Climate Change Challenges
Mike Harding (Geosyntec Consultants)
Doug Oram (ETIC Engineering)
In this presentation, Mike and Doug will focus on the evolving appreciation of various applications for microbial extracts that can be used for both remedial and mitigation purposes, and how that plays into the bigger climate change context. They will discuss the development of commercially produced extracts and their application in agriculture, soil, and groundwater remediation and storm water mitigation programs.
Mike Harding is an environmental scientist and one of the leading technical experts in the field of erosion and sediment control. He has over 40 years of experience in resource management, mined land reclamation, wildlife habitat development, and nonpoint source pollution control both in the U.S. and overseas. Mike specializes in the evaluation, research, development, and application of cost-effective erosion control materials and techniques. He played a key role in the emergency soil stabilization efforts following the 1991 Oakland firestorm; 1993 Southern California fire; and the 2003, 2007 2012 and 2014 San Diego County/City Fires. Nationally, his efforts on over 50 emergency response plans have focused on leadership, financial assistance and technical guidance in the form of post-fire hazard assessment, design of mitigation strategies, and oversight of extensive mitigation implementation efforts before the onset of winter rains. He developed and teaches the course "Fire & Rain: Post-Fire Hazard Remediation." He is an Adjunct Faculty member of San Diego State University's College of Civil and Environmental Engineering. He has been the invited speaker at the National Academy of Sciences, the National Transportation Research Board, and was a contributing author to two books.
Doug Oram has over 25 years of experience in the design, implementation, and evaluation of remedial engineering projects and subsurface investigations, two years of experience in analytical chemistry, and six years of experience in synthetic chemistry and process development. He is the author of more than 30 technical publications and co-author of "Selection of Representative TPH Fractions Based on Fate and Transport Considerations."
At the Intersection of Sea-Level Rise and Waste Management
Randy Brandt (Geosyntec Consultants)
Evaluating sea-level rise and related impacts on closed waste management units or other remediation projects located near the ocean coast or bay shore lands is important to ensure that wastes or contaminated material contained within the closed areas are not released or become exposed to human or ecological receptors as sea level and climate conditions change. Given that estimates of sea-level rise are highly variable and estimates for longer-term scenarios have greater uncertainty, it is critical to establish a site-specific design basis for addressing sea-level rise when designing and implementing remediation and closure plans for waste management sites along the shoreline. Based on design work being conducted to close former waste management units at an industrial facility near San Francisco Bay, the following key issues were evaluated to establish a design basis for addressing sea-level rise: (1) defining the site-specific sea-level rise parameters to be used for the project; (2) identifying and evaluating the site-specific factors that could impact the project; and (3) developing an appropriate adaptive management strategy to manage and mitigate the undesirable direct and consequential effects of sea-level rise on closed units that require long-term operations and maintenance. Randy will discuss how to evaluate these issues to establish a sound project design basis to address sea-level rise.
Randy Brandt is a Principal with Geosyntec Consultants, based out of the San Francisco, California office. He is a California Professional Geologist with over 30 years' experience in hydrogeology with special emphasis on environmental and hazardous waste issues related to Brownfield Redevelopment projects. He has provided regulatory compliance and development-related environmental solutions for oil refineries, military installations, chemical manufacturing plants, hard rock and aggregate mines, landfills, hazardous waste land treatment units, surface impoundments, waste piles, underground storage tanks, and non-point source areas of contamination. Randy is adept at developing creative and cost-effective remediation and site closure strategies to meet objectives of project stakeholders, including responsible parties, regulatory agencies, developers, planners, and the public. He has particular experience with devising strategies to integrate site remediation with land development activities, supporting an end-state vision which emphasizes reduced overall life-cycle environmental cost and liability exposure. Much of his work involves complex facilities along the Pacific Coast where he has adapted the science of climate change to solutions for effective management of waste facilities and groundwater resources, considering the future effects of rising sea level and other factors associated with climate change.
Panel Discussion: Building Resilience into Remediation and Redevelopment Planning
Dion Jackson and Hilda Blanco (University of Southern California)
Anne Dailey (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
Mike Antos, Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority
Ecosystem resilience planning requires ecosystem-scale planning. Project scale planners operate in a vacuum without systems-scale environmental information. Obtaining this information requires building consensus across multiple stakeholders (e.g., agencies, regulators, advocates). Local nonprofit environmental groups are often best suited to this task. Panelists will discuss water resilience issues, from desalination to reclamation and conservation, and a case study.
Dion Jackson is the Program Director with the University of Southern California Center for Economic Development (CED) in the Sol Price School of Public Policy and an Adjunct Associate Professor. CED is a clinical forum and outreach arm for the school, engaging the energy, enthusiasm, and talent of students, faculty, and staff to provide a wide range of services to public, private, and nonprofit entities in the 12 counties of Central and Southern California. Specializing in community outreach and economic development strategic planning, Dion manages grant writing, grants management, report writing, and oversees graduate students on economic development projects for local communities. Her most recent projects have been on the federal initiative, Investing in Manufacturing Communities Partnership (IMCP), which is aimed at doing nothing less than reinventing how economic development is done in manufacturing. She is the coordinator of the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership for Southern California which is a collaborative formed under the IMCP Initiative to improve the industrial ecosystem for aerospace and defense companies and their supply chain across the region.
Hilda Blanco is the Interim Director of the Center for Sustainable Cities and a Research Professor at the Price School of Public Policy, both at the University of Southern California. Her research focuses on urban land management, cities and climate change, and urban water policy. In the area of urban land management, she developed the first versions of New Jersey's state-wide urban growth management plan; collaborated with researchers at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences to evaluate China's 1980s urban land reforms; and most recently chaired international advisory group for the major EU research project on European sprawl (PLUREL 2008-2011). In climate change, her research has centered on cities and urban land policies in both mitigation and adaptation. She was a lead author for the 2014 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment with a focus on urbanization, infrastructure and the role of spatial planning; and was also lead author for the U.S. National Climate Assessment (2014) focused on the U.S. Southwest region. Her current research centers on water supply management in Southern California under climate change. She is the North American editor of the Journal of Environmental Planning and Management.
Anne Dailey is a Senior Environmental Scientist with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology Innovation. Among other duties, Anne co-led development of EPA's recently issued series of Superfund climate change adaptation technical fact sheets. In addition to climate change adaptation, Anne also works on groundwater issues and is the Superfund Completions Coordinator and Superfund Tribal Coordinator. Prior to joining EPA Headquarters four years ago, Anne worked for more than 20 years in EPA Region 10 (Seattle) in both the Superfund and Water programs. In Region 10, she was a Superfund Remedial Project Manager for more than a decade and worked on a broad array of remediation challenges. Anne has a Bachelor of Science in Geology and a Master's of Science in Oceanography from the University of Washington.
Mike Antos is a Watershed Manager for the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority, where he leads efforts to engage members of disadvantaged communities with ongoing and future integrated water management. In the past, he was the inaugural Director of the Center for Urban Water Resilience within the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences at California State University Northridge and also the Programs Director of the non-profit Council for Watershed Health. There Mike led projects related to integrated water management, disadvantaged community engagement, storm water capture for groundwater augmentation, and assessment of watershed health. He is a member of the Water Resources Group of UCLA's Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, on the boards of the LA-based nonprofit Coalition for Our Water Future and the Loyola-Marymount University Center for Urban Resilience, and a Fellow of the Robert & Patricia Switzer Foundation.
Brief summaries of SURF 30 presentations are provided below.
Sustainable Remediation Meets Climate Change Adaptation
Brandt Butler, AECOM
Climate change is occurring around the globe and effects are being felt at a local level. Long-term remediation projects may increasingly face the threat of extreme weather events, but also must consider gradual changes, such as changes in temperature, precipitation, ground water levels, and sea level, and how each may alter local site conditions and affect the performance of the remedy. Until recently, site cleanup and climate change have been addressed independently. Sustainable remediation frameworks are well suited to include climate change considerations in assessing the suitability of remedial options for contaminated sites. These same considerations can also be used to evaluate current remediation systems or a portfolio of systems. Predictions based on climate change scenarios can be incorporated into design and remedy decision-making to develop a more sustainable and less vulnerable solution.
The USEPA recently produced a climate change adaptation implementation plan that considers how remediation sites may be vulnerable to climate change impacts and how adaptation strategies may be considered.
This presentation will help the audience understand the threat climate change poses to existing remedies and how they could affect and influence the selection and design of future remedies. The presentation will review the USEPA's direction and identify issues regarding site cleanup and climate change. In addition, a framework for climate change mitigation and adaptation from a remediation perspective will be presented, including conceptual approaches to addressing mitigation and climate change impacts and vulnerability in remediation design and operation.
Tesoro's Sustainable Remediation Program:
Current and Future Sustainability Considerations and Interplays
Kyle Waldron, Tesoro
Tesoro is developing a process to assess sustainability performance for remediation site portfolio using quantitative and qualitative measurements of key metrics that align with corporate sustainability goals. To this end, Tesoro Environmental has begun developing sustainable remediation pilot assessments for a subset of sites to better understand overall sustainability impacts and the interaction between different sustainability indicators (such as energy and water) at each site. The results of the pilots are being summarized in sustainability dashboards that concisely and visually present a cost-benefit analysis, benchmarking of sustainability performance relative to Tesoro's corporate performance, and sustainability evaluations for key indicators.
This presentation will provide an overview of Tesoro's current sustainable remediation program and plans for the future improvements. The discussion will involve the sustainability assessment results for a site in Fairbanks, Alaska. The site operates an active pump, treat and reinjection system, an energy intensive technology. The analysis will highlight the connections between water and energy management and the approaches taken to reduce associated impacts. The presentation will conclude with reflections on how changing conditions, such as increased droughts in the West, may start to impact stakeholder perception relating to different groundwater treatment alternatives, including reinjection, off-site discharge and other, potentially beneficial end uses. Changes in the decision-making process will likely interplay with future sustainability performance and could change the course of the sustainable remediation movement in the long term.
In Situ Activated Carbon Amendment Technology for Sediment Remediation:
Status Update and Sustainability Aspects
YeoMyoung Cho, Stanford University
In situ activate carbon amendment technology has shown great potential to manage sediment contaminated by hydrophobic organic compounds (HOCs), such as PCBs and PAHs, and has gained increasing attention from program managers, consultants, and regulatory agencies. Research clearly demonstrated that this technology can effectively reduce the risks of sediment-bound HOCs (i.e., primary environmental impacts); however, secondary environmental impacts have not been fully addressed. This presentation will begin with a discussion on the sustainability of the in situ activate carbon amendment remediation strategy in a broad context, followed by a technology overview and status update. In addition, the evaluation of secondary environmental impacts of the in situ activate carbon amendment compared to other remedial alternatives will be discussed based on a LCA case study for a site at Hunters Point Shipyard, California.
Remediation Performance and Cost Database:
Implications for Improving Sustainability
Travis McGuire, GSI
The Department of Defense and private sector have invested billions of dollars in environmental restoration, with thousands of sites in the U.S. requiring some type of groundwater remediation. In the process of remediating these sites, large amounts of monitoring data are collected, including prior to the start of clean up, during the active remediation phase, and after remediation efforts have been completed. To make this large investment in groundwater remediation technologies more effective, end-users need quantitative, accurate, and reliable performance and cost data for commonly used remediation technologies. While data from a specific site are valuable in guiding site-specific decisions, the real value is in compiling and analyzing data from a range of sites to provide insight on overall technology performance.
The overall objective of this work was to develop a comprehensive remediation performance and cost database using results from numerous remediation projects. The project resulted in a performance database of 235 remediation projects. The dataset suggests that concentration reductions of 0.5 to 2.0 orders of magnitude are typical when using the most common in situ remedial technologies for groundwater treatment of chlorinated solvents. Several characteristics of remediation projects were evaluated to provide insights into factors that may affect remediation outcomes. In addition, several key focus areas were studied to provide insights on sustained treatment vs. rebound, performance of "treatment trains," and performance at "remediation done right" sites as described in the peer-reviewed literature.
The project results will be useful to set expectations as part of the remedial decision-making process. In terms of improving sustainability at sites where active remediation is on-going or has been recently completed, the dataset will be particularly useful for transition assessments at complex sites and for five-year reviews at federal cleanup sites.
Beneficial Reuse of Treated Groundwater for Plant Operations
Bill Butler, ERM
A chemical manufacturing facility in New Jersey was required to implement a remedial action to address groundwater affected by volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and fluorocarbons. Various in situ remediation technologies were evaluated using bench-scale and pilot testing. Results indicated that these technologies would be ineffective at treating the fluorocarbons or that performance was limited by the layered soil lithology. Although not the preferred remedial approach, groundwater pump and treat (GWPT) was selected to hydraulically contain the VOCs and fluorocarbons on-site. The proposed GWPT system consists of four recovery wells installed in the shallow, unconfined aquifer that would pump groundwater at an average rate of 264 gpm, which was predicted by modeling to achieve hydraulic containment. After evaluating the discharge and treatment options, using the treated groundwater for plant operations was selected as the most cost-effective option. Water supply for the plant is provided by two on-site water supply wells installed within a deeper, confined aquifer. Groundwater from the deeper aquifer requires treatment to remove iron and other hardness minerals using ion exchange to achieve standards required for manufacturing. Ultimately, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection approved a revised water allocation permit for the plant that provided the desired flexibility. The key benefits of this approach will be presented. Overall, the project achieved a positive outcome despite having to employ the least preferred remediation alternative. The remediation system continues to operate today with positive results in terms of achieving the remedial action objectives and meeting the plant's needs.
How Can a Green Remediation Project Benefit by Incorporating Sustainability?
Melissa Harclerode and Mike Miller, CDMSmith
Green remediation considers all environmental effects of remedy implementation and incorporates practices to maximize the net environmental benefit of the cleanup actions. These green options are most often incorporated into an already-selected remedy, but need not necessarily wait for this stage of the project. In comparison, sustainable remediation strives to balance environmental, economic, and social concerns–the triple bottom line–throughout the life cycle of the remediation project. If another step is taken and the socio-economic benefits of green remediation practices are monetized, we can extrapolate environmental indicators to global-scale impacts. In this presentation, cost-benefit analysis methodology is incorporated into a green remediation project, starting from its footprint analysis, to demonstrate the social and economic benefits that can be realized by monetizing environmental effects such as greenhouse gas emissions. The results support the additional value of green remediation (for a cost-averse audience) and lead the way to further project improvements (for a triple bottom line-averse audience).
The case study site is a manufacturing facility with chlorinated solvent contaminated groundwater beneath an active factory building. As the groundwater pump-and-treat system reached its asymptotic removal limit, it was gradually replaced with in situ anaerobic bioremediation through systematic injection of aqueous food-grade carbon substrate. The transformed treatment strategy improved removal of the contaminants and reduced the environmental impact of the remediation system as quantified by field logs, utility bills, invoices, and operation and maintenance records. Greenhouse gas emissions for pump and treat versus bioremediation were summed as carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) from drilling, transportation, electricity use, etc. In turn, the CO2e contributions to global climate change and projected damage to health and quality of life were quantified as costs based on the economic researches of others, including the U.S. Government. In this way, the carbon footprint of the remediation project was converted into monetized global impacts. The project's water footprint was also evaluated, but the current state of economic research limited the monetization of water depletion impacts.
This evaluation predicted costs for long-term global damages from implementation of the two alternative remedial strategies. The results allowed for a direct comparison of the two remedial approaches; provided a single, universally recognized unit–cost–for disparate metrics; and demonstrated a method to quantify the more elusive socio-economic effects of a remediation project. The calculations also revealed a possible numerical decision point for selecting one remedial approach over another: when the market cost plus environmental damages (= social cost) of the new approach become less than the social cost from making no changes. Consideration of monetized socio-economic impacts demonstrated a mechanism to incorporate the triple bottom line without compromising the environmental cleanup and, thus, help move the state of practice toward more sustainable remediation so that further positive impacts can be incorporated into remediation projects.
Water and Waste Treatment Practices in Oil and Gas:
Current Practices, Technologies, and Opportunities for Improvement
Laura Capper, CAP Resources
This presentation will include an overview of the complexity of low-cost treatment of oil and gas water, as well as a discussion of the variances in water quality, the reasons for that variance, fluctuating conditions, and technical challenges. In addition, current water management practices in oil and gas will be reviewed. Locations where these systems are strained (including sourcing, transportation, storage, treatment, and disposal) will be reviewed, along with a national overview of volumetrics and spending associated with each. Common treatment methods, including what works cost effectively and what has yet to be proven will be presented. Finally, trends in mobile versus fixed facility implementations will be presented and the feasible regulatory changes and potential cost impacts on industry will be evaluated.
Management Strategies to Achieve Remedy Complete when Groundwater Concentrations Fluctuate with Water Table Changes and Drought Conditions
Matthew Alexander, Leidos
Achieving remedy complete when volatile organic compound (VOC) concentrations have approached cleanup levels but continued to fluctuate above and below the cleanup values for an extended period of time is challenging. In some instances, concentration fluctuations appear to be correlated with precipitation events, which may be either annual cyclic trends or extended drought interrupted by significant rainfall events. Such precipitation-correlated concentration fluctuations have been observed for chlorinated or petroleum VOCs at numerous hazardous waste sites in the U.S. In these instances, the challenge is predicting when a site is expected to attain remedy complete (that is, the termination of active remediation or monitored natural attenuation) and can then transition into long-term monitoring when fluctuations that lead to cleanup standard exceedances are unpredictable. Many states require one to two years of quarterly or semi-annual monitoring with contaminant concentrations continually below respective cleanup levels for closure, yet the above instances of contaminant fluctuation can upset these levels.
The conceptual site model that explains such fluctuations is residual contamination that is adsorbed to the vadose zone or adsorbed to the solid phase in the saturated zone or capillary fringe that is then released to the groundwater by leaching as a result of infiltration. An additional potential contributor is the creation of VOC exceedances by the appearance of daughter products from degradation of the parent after instances of high water table or leaching from the vadose zone. Several management strategies were developed to address or overcome the unpredictable nature of precipitation that leads to these undesirable situations in long-term management and closure: (1) performing chemical injection events coincident with a high water table so that the maximum aquifer saturated thickness is affected by the injection chemicals; (2) using biostimulation or chemical oxidation chemicals that react quickly so as to maximize the immediate effect under the current water table conditions; (3) creating artificial infiltration and water table rise by irrigating the surface of the site to immediately promote leaching and in situ degradation; and (4) implementing a risk-based approach that allows a small residual level of contamination to be left behind as long as the point of exposure meets the cleanup level. The decrease in time to closure and the project savings are the metrics of greatest interest when implementing one of these approaches; however, whether the site is closed with or without land use controls is also important. This presentation will discuss the implementation and outcome of these approaches.
An Updated SiteWise™ Tool for Sustainable Sediment Remedies
Russ Sirabian and Sam Moore, Battelle
SiteWise™ has been used effectively for terrestrial sites to incorporate green and sustainable remediation into the remedial decision-making process by quantifying the environmental impact of remediation activities. Despite contaminated sediments being a known environmental concern and the long history of addressing sediments through remedial action, green and sustainable remediation metrics have not been as widely considered in the context of contaminated sediment remediation. Battelle has developed a revision to the SiteWise™ tool to address this knowledge gap. SiteWise™ includes environmental footprint factors that consider primary, secondary, and even tertiary sustainability impacts. Version 3.1 now includes modules that relate directly to sediment-related remediation approaches, including dredging, capping, and monitored natural recovery. Sediment-specific remediation activities will be described, along with the modules that have been added to Version 3.1 to support the application of green and sustainable remediation at sediment sites. In addition, best management practices for sustainable sediment remediation will be discussed and case study examples presented.
Integrating Sustainability Metrics into Remedial Decision Making
Erin Healy and Mark Meyers, Anchor QEA
Currently, green and sustainable remediation involves reducing the environmental and sometimes social impacts of an already-selected remedy. An approach and analytic framework to integrate environmental, social and economic considerations into the remedial-decision making process will be presented, along with examples of application. A wide range of sustainability factors have been included in the framework, including ecosystem function, resource use (water and energy), social and cultural resources and values, climate change (carbon footprint and adaptation), and economic benefits. The approach integrates the results of these analyses into the feasibility study so that sustainability is considered as part of the review and selection of the preferred alternative. The analytic framework is based on net benefits analysis, looking at the potential impacts and beneficial outcomes from implementation of a remedial strategy.
Sustainability of In Situ Stabilization Projects
Paul Lear, Envirocon
Sustainability continues to be an important aspect of remedial projects. In situ stabilization, a common remedial technology, can easily incorporate the following sustainability best management practices: (1) minimizing total energy use by using alternate reagents instead of cement; (2) maximizing renewable energy use by using solar-powered backups for the perimeter air monitoring system; (3) minimizing air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions by using biodegradable foam suppressants and machinery equipped with advanced emission controls; (4) minimizing water use and water resources impacts by collecting and reusing decontamination, storm water, and treated wastewater in the reagent batch grout plant; (5) reusing materials and reducing materials and waste through concrete recycling and tree/stump mulching; and (6) using local labor and supplies by hiring local skilled and general laborers and buying materials from local vendors. This presentation will discuss the sustainability of in situ stabilization and provide carbon footprint calculations for a completed ISS project.
Assessing the Resilience and Adaptability of Phytoremediation and Enhanced In Situ Bioremediation Under Global Climate Change
Deyi Hou, Parsons
Phytoremediation is an innovative remediation technology with increased interest from both academic researchers and industrial practitioners; enhanced in situ bioremediation is a remediation technology that has become widely adopted over the last decade. However, the life-cycle impacts of phytoremediation and enhanced in situ bioremediation have rarely been examined, and their resilience to climate change have never been studied from a life-cycle perspective in existing literature. The present study explores the effects of sea level rise and changing hydroclimatic conditions on the life-cycle impacts of phytoremediation and enhanced in situ bioremediation systems. The study was conducted in the San Francisco Bay area, where thousands of contaminated sites are located in an area that may be affected by sea level rise and changing hydroclimatic conditions.
Brief summaries of SURF 28 presentations are provided below.
Sustainable Remediation: A Perspective in Low and Middle Income Countries
Bob Montgomery (World Bank)
Addressing contaminated sites in Low and Middle Income Countries is becoming more relevant and needed, and sustainable remediation both at a program and project level offers excellent opportunities for enhanced benefits. However it is key that sustainable remediation fully and equally address the three aspects - Economic, Social and Environment – taking into consideration the specific socio-economic conditions in these countries. This presentation will provide a perspective for technical specialists to consider when applying sustainable remediation in low and middle income countries by highlighting key issues and considerations.
A Big Picture Look at the Benefits of Greener Cleanups
Charlie Bartsch (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
Unquestionably, greener cleanups have important environmental benefits that are worth pursuing. But a critical challenge is broadening the base of interest in carrying out such cleanups – convincing more current and prospective site owners that greener cleanups make sense for them. One way of doing that is showing potential skeptics how some of the social and economic benefits of greener cleanups make them worthwhile to pursue.
Greener Cleanups: Past, Present and Future
Deb Goldblum (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 3)
SURF members were instrumental in the creation of ASTM's Standard Guide for Greener Cleanups from its conception to its release. But building a standard is only part of the journey. Now is the time to apply it at sites, communicate the benefits, and make it "the industry standard" for green remediation, improving the environmental outcome of cleanups nationally and globally.
Humic Acid - A Sustainable Solution for Detoxifying Groundwater
Ralph Nichols (Savannah River National Laboratory)
This presentation demonstrates how the formulatoin of an environmental problem controls potential outcomes. A case study will be presented to illustrate turning points in a project to treat a wastewater discharge in response to changes in environmental science. New thinking about the changes in the way discharge limits are calculated was used to develop a sustainable solution that improved environmental quality relative to traditionally accepted methods.
Updates on GSR in the Army and the USACE
Carol Lee Dona (USACE Environmental and Munitions Center of Expertise, Environmental Engineering and Geology Division)
This presentation will provide an update of the Army and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Green and Sustainable Remediation (GSR) programs. A recent case study will be used to illustrate the elements of the Army/USACE GSR approach, including application of the GSR Best Management Practice (BMP) list developed by the Army/USACE and documentation of the evaluation and implementation of the BMPs found practical through the evaluation. Examples of the contract language used to include GSR in the remedial process will also be discussed as well as the current status of Department of Defense, Army, and USACE GSR policy and guidance.
Overview of Massachusetts's Clean Energy Goals and Promotion of Greener Cleanups
Tom Potter (Massachusetts Dept. of Environmental Protection)
This presentation will include an overview of the state's clean energy goals in relation to greener cleanups; a presentation of the regulatory provisions that were part of the 2014 amendments to the Massachusetts Contingency Plan that promote consideration of green approaches for the assessment and remediation of oil and hazardous material disposal sites; and a presentation of the associated Greener Cleanup Policy presenting recommended options for compliance with the regulatory provisions with focus on MassDEP's support for use of ASTM's Standard Guide for Greener Cleanups.
GSR Practices at Navy Sites
Kim Parker Brown (Naval Facilities Engineering Command Headquarters, Environmental Restoration Division)
This presentation will provide an overview of the Navy's Green and Sustainable Remediation (GSR) practices. Information on the Navy Guidance for GSR and GSR metrics will be provided. Additionally, the Navy has gone back and gathered information on completed footprint analyses for GSR and developed case studies. From these case studies, a list of top best management practices for footprint reduction was developed and will be presented.
Striving for Simpler, Consistent LCA of Remediation Activities using LCA Templates
Todd Krieger (DuPont Engineering Research & Technology)
DuPont uses LCA to evaluate remediation alternatives and improve the sustainability of existing remedies. Remediation work at DuPont is conducted with the assistance of multiple remediation partners, and LCA is often a complicated analysis requiring methodological assumptions and specific LCA training. To simplify the effort and achieve consistent results, DuPont collaborated with AECOM, CH2M Hill, Geosyntec, and Parsons to develop a suite of LCA templates for commonly applied remedial actions at DuPont. This presentation will explain the templates, discuss current plans for sharing the templates, and give us a chance to ask SURF for its input and interest.
Climate Adaptation Planning and Strategy: An ASTM Guide
Elisabeth Freed (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
The ASTM Committee E50 on Environmental Risk Assessment and Management has produced many standards on current environmental issues, especially those associated with site cleanup, material reuse, and climate change. Recent examples are the Green Cleanup Guide and Sustainable Cleanup Guide. A guide on Climate Adaptation Planning and Strategy is currently being developed. The guide will be a first step for municipalities and businesses in formulating a plan of action and responding to risks from drought, fire, storms, floods, tidal surge, and sea level rise.
The Boeing Company: Sustainable Remediation Program Overview
Nick Garson (Boeing)
This presentation will provide an overview of Boeing's Sustainable Remediation Program, including value proposition, guidelines for implementation, and a few high level case studies.
Starting with the End in Mind: A Sustainable Approach to Site Cleanup and Reuse
Russ Downey (Pfizer)
This presentation will focus on Pfizer's commitment to one of its key values (i.e., Respect for Society) by restoring those complex legacy sites in its remediation portfolio that involve wide-spread community interest through sustainable means and methods. Listening to concerns and soliciting feedback from stakeholders is essential to USEPA and state agency selection of a sustainable remediation approach that the community will accept as being safe, supportive of the community (if practicable) and protective of human-health and the environment while being compatible with future desirable land-use. With the end land use in mind and by working closely with community and local, state, and federal stakeholders, Pfizer has established an approach for implementing best practices in sustainable remediation and restoration as well as long-term operations, maintenance and monitoring. This brief presentation will include guiding principles, best practices, and site-specific examples in both Superfund and RCRA.
Industry Panel on Sustainable Remediation: Past Successes and Future Programs
Buddy Bealer (Shell), Russ Downey (Pfizer), Nick Garson (Boeing), and Scott Pittenger (Norfolk Southern Railway Company)
This panel of responsible party representatives will discuss how they view the future of sustainable remediation and how SURF could enable or contribute to a path forward. Each panelist will provide an explanation of their company's plans to consider or implement aspects of sustainable remediation presently and in the future. Potential topics of discussion may include economic aspects, funding, stakeholder involvement, management's perspective, and drivers.
Summaries of SURF 27 presentations are provided below.
Panel Discussion – Sustainable Strategies for Managing Contaminated Properties
Kevin Lund (MDEQ) and Grant Trigger (RACER Trust)
Effective contaminated site management necessitates balancing a number of overlapping and interrelated factors including technical, legal, regulatory, societal and business (economic) issues.
The mission of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) is to safeguard public health and quality of life by protecting and carefully permitting activities that impact our air, water and soils. MDEQ is a full partner in Michigan's economic recovery. Business development and environmental stewardship can and should co-exist, and the MDEQ and RACER Trust are leading the effort with help from University of Michigan students to promote sustainable engineered systems that safeguard public health and quality of life and that are also compatible with sustaining natural (environmental) systems.
The panel will discuss sustainable engineering systems applied at the Willow Run Facilities including the decisions to select end of pipe treatment using a subsurface wetland and leach field and adaptive reuse of the concrete slab.
Sustainable Remediation across a Portfolio - Looking Ahead through 2014
Sharron Reackhof, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E)
In 2011, PG&E developed a programmatic sustainable remediation guidance to establish a consistent approach to evaluate, incorporate, and track the benefits of sustainable best management practices (BMPs) across its portfolio of environmental remediation sites. In use for over two years, the guidance has been applied to over 75 sites. BMPs implemented have targeted the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, reductions in the generation of liquid and solid waste, enhanced use of renewable energy, boosts to economies local to remediation project sites, and maximization of stakeholder satisfaction, among others. Project teams continue to work together to identify and implement BMPs to improve to sustainability performance while maintaining the effectiveness of site operations. In 2013, PG&E expanded on its successes and challenged its project teams to identify opportunities to further reduce GHG emissions, with a focus on site investigation and remediation activities where activities require the use of heavy equipment. Additionally, when applicable, sustainable practices are being formally documented in the text and appendices of project deliverables.
Case studies representing a cross section of PG&E's portfolio will be presented to illustrate how different sites are incorporating sustainability and are meeting specific company goals. The presentation will demonstrate how teams are viewing their remediation sites more holistically, leading to substantial, tangible environmental, social, and economic benefits.
Long-Term Benefits of Systematic and Collaborative Sustainability Approach in Hinkley, California
Kristin Mancini, ARCADIS
Integrating sustainability into large scale remediation sites requires a systematic approach through each stage of the project life-cycle, from project planning to site end-use. Effective implementation of sustainable remediation principles starts with early identification and planning for sustainable practices, stakeholder engagement, and adaptive data tracking methods. A case study will be presented to demonstrate the benefits and lessons learned of implementing the PG&E Guidance (see above abstract) during site investigation and remedial activities completed under the direction of the California Regional Quality Control Board at a site impacted with hexavalent chromium in Hinkley, California. The results of the past two years of project sustainability efforts will be presented along with lessons learned for implementing an effective sustainability approach. Key lessons learned that will be presented include the importance of a common sustainability language, a systematic approach to track and quantify sustainability benefits, and above all a collaborative team approach.
Applying Three Elements of Sustainability to Optimization of a Groundwater Pump & Treat
Jennifer Borski, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR)
The WDNR contracted for an evaluation of an existing groundwater collection and ex-situ treatment system at a former chrome plating facility in Kaukauna, Wisconsin. The evaluation involved identifying ways to optimize the existing remedy and alternative remedial options that considered environmental, economic, and social issues applicable to the site. The WDNR contracted for this effort after reviewing tracked metrics such as water and energy use, hazardous waste generated, and current and end land uses. The evaluation report revealed that the existing groundwater collection system was not fully capturing the plume and presented several optimization options and alternative remedies. Subsequent action by the WDNR reduced hazardous waste generation, chemical consumption, and labor for maintenance of the groundwater collection and treatment system. The WDNR then contracted for design and implementation of a separate in-situ remedy performed in summer 2014. The goals of these actions remain to reduce and immobilize the contaminant mass, phase out the groundwater collection and treatment system, and return the site to private control utilizing Wisconsin-based consultants and subcontractors.
Muddy Boots Meet Tech: Sustainable Advances & Best Practices for Digital Field Data
Josh Ryan, Ornicept
Although technology has greatly impacted remediation data collection and management over the last three decades, fieldwork has remained relatively manual. In 1993, Microsoft released MS Excel version 5. This version was far superior in usability and capability than its predecessors and competitors. It's mathematical, graphical, and VBA tools allowed each remediation professional to manage, manipulate, and present data in a way that previously required teams of people. In 2000, the Department of Defense removed the Selective Availability degradation of GPS accuracy, allowing for new portable units that let remediation fieldworkers capture geographic information in a way that previously required a survey crew. Both of these technologies remain a staple of remediation work today. Sustainability is changing the existing practices, reducing the consumption of energy and resources. Technology has been relied upon to accomplish this in our offices, but the fieldwork has remained manual, for the most part, due to long hours in remote and harsh conditions. Recent improvements in batteries and rugged tablet technology have opened the door to mobile computing in the field, but a lack of tools that could handle the challenges of fieldwork slowed the adoption. As the EPA states and most companies determine, sustainability must take into account the economic impact. In this presentation, we explore the information bottle necks and pain points of collecting data in the field. Our company found that an end-to-end fieldwork collaboration tool can reduce the workflow burdens of project managers and data collection burdens of fieldwork staff. The result is the capability to implement sustainable tools that reduce material and energy usage while improving project turnaround and reducing overall economic impact of the project. The presenter appreciates audience feedback throughout.
Enhancing Sustainability in Brownfield Redevelopment
James M. Harless, Soils and Materials Engineers
Brownfield redevelopment of brownfields is a poster child for sustainability. Redevelopment of brownfields, which are most often in urbanized areas, reduces demand for green space development, provides opportunities to mitigate health and environmental threats, reuses existing infrastructure, restores taxable value, and provides jobs and other economic and social opportunities. These projects also have the potential to be more sustainable through the application of green remediation and other sustainability techniques during site preparation and development. This presentation will explore, using multiple case studies, environmental risk management techniques that have been used to enhance brownfield redevelopment sustainability. It will also examine the roles of the environmental regulatory environment and availability of financial incentives on the success of these sustainability approaches.
Debrief: SustRem 2014 Conference
Amanda McNally, AECOM
In September 2014, Amanda McNally, SURF Secretary, attended the 3rd International Conference on Sustainable Remediation (SustRem 2014) in Ferrara, Italy. Hosted by SURF Italy (a working group of RECONnet), SustRem 2014 was organized around five major themes of sustainable remediation, including Conceptual Framing; Tools, Metrics, and Indicators; "Greening" Remediation; Case Studies; and Stakeholder Involvement. This presentation will touch on some highlights of the conference, including updates from the international SURF network and a workshop on the Case Study Initiative (CSI), chaired by SURF's Barbara Maco. Amanda also presented a poster on SURF's Groundwater Reuse Technical Initiative, which was awarded Best Poster at the conference. Kudos to the GW Reuse TI Team for this effort!
SRI - The Year of Implementation
Melissa Harclerode, CDM Smith
The Sustainable Remediation Initiative (SRI) is a collaborative team consisting of the Sustainable Remediation Forum (SURF), American Petroleum Institute (API), and Interstate Technology Regulatory Council (ITRC). The SRI theme for 2014 is "The Year of Implementation." This past year, SRI convened the Green and Sustainable Remediation (GSR) Roundtable held in Washington, D.C. on June 3, 2014. Participants of the roundtable included SRI members, regulatory and federal agency representatives, and industry leaders. The Roundtable focused on the current process for implementing GSR across federal and state cleanup programs, as well as how to begin improving the opportunities for the advancement of GSR concepts. SRI also led the effort in organizing an oral presentation at the November 6, 2014 Federal Remediation Technologies Roundtable. SURF gave a presentation on the GSR perspective from the private sector. This theme will extend into 2015, initiated by a panel submission for the upcoming National Brownfields Conference. The panel will be based on the power of collaboration to achieve a common vision. Lastly, SRI continues to solicit the remediation industry for sustainable remediation champions to promote such practices within their own agency and corporation.
Case Study – Transformation of a Superfund Site to an Ecological Habitat Using Sustainable Remediation Principles and Public and Private Partnerships
Mary Rager, Pollinator Partnership
Bruce Wilkinson, Haley & Aldrich, Inc.
The site was once operated by the Chemical Commodities, Inc. (CCI) as a chemical brokerage recycling facility. During its 38 years of operation, CCI bought chemicals from dozens of companies and governmental agencies. Numerous companies, including Rocketdyne, which was briefly part of The Boeing Company, shipped wastes to the site for recycling during the 1960s.
Over time, chemicals shipped to CCI for recycling were spilled or leaked into soils and groundwater due to improper housekeeping practices at the Site. The resulting contamination required comprehensive remediation under the EPA Superfund program. A partnership between the responsible parties, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the local community led to the successful cleanup of the site. Sustainable remediation principles were applied throughout the process.
Following completion of remedial activities, Boeing took the initiative to convert the remediated site to an ecological habitat through coordination with a number of public and private partners including the local Citizen's Advisory Group, EPA, Pollinator Partnership, Monarch Watch, Wildlife Habitat Council and Haley & Aldrich. The habitat consists of mostly native plants that provide sources of food, shelter and safe areas for breeding for various pollinators like bees, birds, and butterflies, especially monarch butterflies. This case study tells the story of transforming a Superfund Site into an ecological habitat.
Creating a Powerful Property through Partnerships
Dina Toto, DuPont
Andy Meserve, Tangent Energy Solutions
An estimated 100,000 closed landfills exist in the U.S., representing hundreds of thousands of acres in unused land. At a one such landfill adjacent to a former DuPont manufacturing site in Newport, Delaware, a 584‑kilowatt, five-acre solar farm was constructed that produces sufficient energy to power 60 homes. The project reused a portion of this federal Superfund site that had no other purpose and provides reliable, renewable energy with zero emissions to the environment (vs. 350 tons of greenhouse gas). The project is the first of its kind in the Mid‑Atlantic U.S., setting a precedent within Region 3 of the Environmental Protection Agency. At the same site, DuPont is partnering with the Wildlife Habitat Council to create a pollinator meadow in one area of the site and a beneficial habitat on two landfills totaling over 20 acres. Activities to date have included implementing a beetle program to biologically control invasive plants, planting wildflower seeds to create three pollinator meadows, and installing several swallow boxes to provide additional habitats for birds. DuPont plans on installing duck boxes, purple martin houses, and an osprey platform in 2014.
Return of Brownfield Redevelopment & Phase I & II ESA Market
Canaan Crouch, Sullivan Curtis Monroe LLC
Thierry Montoya, Alvarado Smith APC
On October 5, 2013, the Governor approved Assembly Bill 440, also known as the Gatto Act. This Bill is in direct response to the abolition of the California Redevelopment Agencies (RDAs), and their authority formerly granted through the Polanco Act of 1990. AB 440 provides a format for transforming blighted urban properties from their current state to usable properties providing taxable income for communities and the State. Cities and municipalities are empowered to pursue the cleanup of blighted properties, as did the predecessor redevelopment agencies, and are protected from the environmental liability. Cities and Municipalities will now be legally empowered to cause an owner of a blighted property to conduct a Phase I and/or II environmental assessment in order to determine the environmental status of their property. If contaminated, the City or Municipality may require the property to be cleaned up under the appropriate local oversight program (LOP). If the property owner does not comply, then the City/Municipality is legally entitled to conduct the assessment and cleanup up the Blighted Property on their own, and may then charge the property owner for all of their expenses. This work can all be done by the City/Municipality without taking on the liability for the impacts to natural resources like groundwater.
This presentation will bring attendees up to date on the specialized tools and knowledge required to develop Brownfield projects, including legal and liability concerns, and will discuss the process of environmental cleanup through interesting case studies. Topics covered include:
Stakeholder Engagement in Sustainable Remediation – A Case Study
Stella Karnis, CN
Tim Robertson, Stefano Marconetto, and Phil Moddle, Golder
The Site is impacted by metals due to a historic derailment of zinc copper concentrate. The main contaminants of concern are zinc and copper. The Site is located in an area that's difficult to access and logging roads had to be upgraded to access the Site. The Site, a rail corridor, is bordered on each side by water (wetlands). CN has been working with the regulators at this Site for over 7 years as well as the neighbouring landowner, the Crown. This presentation will focus on the stakeholder engagement process including up to the evaluation of remedial options that has allowed CN to build trust with the stakeholders with the objective of ultimately reaching a practical solution for the Site. Remedial options are limited for the site, with the two main options (with variations) being stabilization and excavation. These remedial options were assessed using CN's sustainability tool (GoldSET) and the indicators, weighting and input parameters where discussed with the regulator and the Crown (neighbour). These discussions have helped clarify the expectation of these stakeholders, the objectives of CN and have also served to actually make adjustments to our tool (based on useful feedback). The regulator is supporting our use of the tool/approach/results in our stakeholder engagement including with the First Nations (to be led by the Province) and environmental group involved in the file, which will likely occur in 2014. We are currently working on material to simplify the reporting results of the sustainability assessment for stakeholders that may have less technical knowledge.
Comparison of Four Environmental Footprint Assessment Tools: Can You Have Confidence in the Results?
Paul J. Favara, CH2M HILL
Since 2009, there has been significant remediation industry effort to develop and use environmental footprint assessments to support project decisions. As of 2013, the most commonly applied footprint assessment tools include Sustainable Remediation Tool (SRT), SiteWise, Spreadsheets for Environmental Footprint Analysis (SEFA), and SimaPro. All four tools use the same general approach to estimate the environmental footprint of a remediation option or alternative: 1) practioners input different features of the remediation option, 2) the tool cross-references the inputs against the data resources in the tool and calculates associated emission, energy, and other information for each input, and 3) the total environmental emissions, energy, and other information is reported and represents the environmental footprint of the option or alternative.
A comparison of the four most common footprint assessment tools was performed using input from the same project to help understand consistencies and differences between the tool results. Several experienced footprint assessment practioners evaluated the four tools using the same project inputs. The input information for the tool comparison was the 90-percent design for the Grants Chlorinated Solvent Plume site, in Grants, New Mexico. The design utilized three different technologies to remediation contaminated groundwater: in-situ chemical oxidation (ISCO), in-situ thermal treatment (ISTT), and enhanced reductive dechlorination (ERD). The practioners coordinated their inputs to ensure the information from the remedial design was interpreted similarly so as to minimize the impacts of interpretation input on tool results. The results for each tool were analyzed numerous ways to identify areas of commonality and significant differences in the tool results.
This presentation summarizes the results of the first comprehensive comparison of the four most utilized remediation footprint assessment tools. The results of the four tools showed similarities for some metrics parameters and differences - sometimes significant - for other metrics. The impacts of the differences on project decision making was also evaluated. Recommendations to achieve more consistency in results of the most utilized industry footprint assessment tools were also developed.
LEED Rating System: 10 Pros & Cons
Dominique Smith, USGBC-LA
Since LEED's launch in 2000, more than 55,000 commercial projects spanning 10.1 billion square feet, and more than 116,000 residential units around the world participate in the rating system, with 1.7 million square feet of building space earning LEED certification every day. Nearly 190,000 LEED professional credential holders are engaged in advancing this global movement.
To its credit, LEED has moved a mountain: mainstreaming and quantifying green design and influencing businesses and stakeholders to realize its financial benefit. As LEED gains popularity, it must guard against creating a numbers game and instead must inspire innovative, forward-looking design.
This candid discussion on the LEED Rating System's strengths and weaknesses can be applied generally to other rating systems and will inspire further dialogue with the audience on the possibilities of a rating system for remediation projects.
Case Study Initiative – Current Status and Future Plans
John A. Simon, Gnarus Advisors LLC
In response to considerable feedback, SURF is implementing a Case Study Initiative (CSI). The purpose of CSI is to develop a framework to follow when compiling case studies to promote a "lessons learned" program to enhance our ability to conduct GSR projects. The CSI Team has established an annotated case study outline, a case study presentation Powerpoint format, an example case study, and a case study tracking database. The Team is planning on gathering and reviewing GSR case studies to post on SURF's website. Once complete, the case studies will be available as a member resource for best-practices sharing, including discussions for external functions (i.e. management, conferences, agencies, other professional organizations, etc).
From Ecology to Resiliency: The Growing Need for Partnerships
Ted Bardacke, Deputy Director of Sustainability for the Office of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti
Ted Bardacke has forged a unique career focusing on sustainable urbanism and economic development that spans three continents. He currently holds the positions of Deputy Director of Sustainability for Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, Adjunct Professor of Urban Environmental Design and Planning at UCLA, and Visiting Fellow at Mexico City's Centro de Transporte Sustentable, an affiliate of the World Resources Institute.
Ted has been deeply involved in both the drafting and implementation of sustainability reference tools and standards, including LEED rating systems for Neighborhood Development and Homes, the Collaborative for High Performance Schools, the Green Communities Initiative for affordable housing, and Transit Oriented Development standards in use throughout Latin America. Notable completed projects include California's first 98 units of zero energy affordable housing, sustainable design program management for $14 billion of school construction at the Los Angeles Unified School District, and technical assistance to 16 local governments across the US who are seeking to transform specific neighborhoods into ones that are more economically prosperous, healthy, and environmentally responsible.
Forming Sustainable Partnerships at Remediation Sites
Deborah Taege, The Boeing Company
The Boeing Company believes that environmental stewardship strengthens our business. Therefore, we have a strong, top-down corporate commitment to sustainability in everything we do as a company, including site remediation. One very important aspect of this commitment is building strong, collaborative partnerships with a varied group of stakeholders. Our experience has proven that reaching out to regulators, residents, local businesses, environmentalists, special interest groups, industry experts, and others enhances and supports environmentally, economically, sustainable, and socially viable remediation outcomes. The case study presented here focuses on the experiences and successes learned at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory in Ventura County, California.
Summaries of SURF 23 presentations and student posters are below.
SURF 23 will be held from July 23-25 -- all day on Tuesday (7/23) and Wednesday (7/24) and until lunchtime on Thursday (7/25). Breakfast, lunch, and snacks can be purchased nearby at the food court or local restaurants; please plan accordingly and BYOC (bring your own coffee)!
A poster session featuring the work of SURF student chapter members from Colorado State University, University of Illinois at Chicago, Clarkson University, and Stanford University will be held on Wednesday evening. Light appetizers and nonalcoholic beverages will be provided.
Community Involvement Between EPA and an Environmental Justice Community, Heriberto León and Rosita Clarke-Moreno, both U.S. EPA, and Jerry Mead-Lucero Pilsen Environmental Rights & Reform Organization
The goal of this presentation is to give a real example of how EPA employees are working with a specific organization in a predominantly Latino community of Chicago to engage in meaningful dialogue and collaboration. A representative from Chicago's Pilsen Environmental Rights and Reform Organization (PERRO) will describe the challenges of getting and sustaining the engagement of public officials and government employees. Representatives from the EPA will describe EPA's outreach activities, listening sessions, response actions, and information/communication strategies.
Heriberto León has been a community involvement coordinator with the U.S. EPA Region 5 for three years. He develops and implements community engagement strategies and plans for site assessments, emergency response sites, and Superfund remedial sites in the six-state Great Lakes region. He teams up with federal on-scene coordinators, remedial project managers, environmental specialists, health scientists, and EPA attorneys to disseminate information to the public, stakeholders and the media on issues and concerns about air, water and soil quality. He is responsible for facilitating meetings and opportunities for public comment to government proposals. Heriberto sees his role primarily as establishing trusting relationships between the EPA and community members--including officials and organizations. Prior to joining the EPA, Mr. León performed supervision, management, and training in the affordable housing sector for nine years; before that he worked for 20 years in higher education administration. In both prior fields, he was involved in outreach activities with diverse populations. Heriberto enjoys showing visitors from around the world the various neighborhoods of Chicago as a volunteer Chicago Greeter with the city's Choose Chicago agency.
Jerry Mead-Lucero is an organizer for PERRO, an environmental justice organization formed in 2004. He has lived in Pilsen, a Mexican immigrant working class community on Chicago's South Side, for 12 years. His family has connections to the neighborhood that date back to the 1940s and his extended family members live in the community. Jerry is a former social studies teacher and has been a labor, immigrant rights, and environmental activist for over 20 years. PERRO recognizes that environmental issues are inextricably intertwined with issues of race, class, and gender and connects its work against neighborhood polluters with other social justice concerns like affordable housing, immigrant rights, and living wage jobs.
Remediation Projects in Densely Populated Urban Communities: Loewenthal Site, Jerry Mead-Lucero, Pilsen Environmental Rights & Reform Organization
The Loewenthal Site is a now open field in the Pilsen community of Chicago, a densely populated urban community made up mostly of Latino immigrant working class residents. It is roughly a half of a city block in size and was once home to a lead smelter. The lead smelter shutdown in the 1940s, but a heavily contaminated site was left behind with lead levels in the soil as high as 26,000 ppm. The site is next door to a senior citizen's home, a community health clinic, and a community garden. It is across the street from a block of apartment buildings and a block away from an elementary school where children walk next to and, in some cases, across the property on their way to school. The site had escaped attention for decades. It was not on any list of contaminated sites maintained by the USEPA or Illinois EPA. The history of the site only surfaced about a decade ago. The Illinois EPA was slow in responding to this revelation and did not inform the community. When a local journalist uncovered the information, the Pilsen Environmental Rights and Reform Organization (PERRO), a local environmental justice organization, mobilized community residents and pushed the USEPA to conduct tests and commit to remediation of the site. Remediation is due to begin in the next few weeks, but is complicated by several factors. As the site is privately owned by an individual whose whereabouts are unknown and who does not respond to any communications, every step in the process has required a court order. Given the location of the site, ensuring the safety of community residents requires extra care and a community safety plan for the remediation work. PERRO and our local Alderman have expressed interest in the City obtaining the site and turning it into a public park, which requires that the remediation meet the standards required of intensive public use in the future.
This presentation will address issues like the specific challenges of remediating sites in close proximity to homes, schools and public spaces. We will discuss community residents concerns with the remediation and how it may affect their health and safety. We will discuss how PERRO has worked with community residents to elicit their concerns and communicate these with the EPA and local public officials. We will share the public safety plan worked out between PERRO and the EPA. We look forward to dialogue with remediation professionals who attend the presentation in regards to their thoughts and advice of such a remediation project.
Jerry Mead-Lucero is an organizer for PERRO, an environmental justice organization formed in 2004. He has lived in Pilsen, a Mexican immigrant working class community on Chicago's South Side, for 12 years. His family has connections to the neighborhood that date back to the 1940s and his extended family members live in the community. Jerry is a former social studies teacher and has been a labor, immigrant rights, and environmental activist for over 20 years. PERRO recognizes that environmental issues are inextricably intertwined with issues of race, class, and gender and connects its work against neighborhood polluters with other social justice concerns like affordable housing, immigrant rights, and living wage jobs.
The Surplus Roundtable: Bounding Environmental Liability - Maximizing Asset Value, Robert Colangelo, The Surplus Property Roundtable
The Surplus Property Roundtable was founded by Alcoa Inc., BASF, Ford, and Exxon Mobil to create a forum where information and experiences related to the challenges provided by surplus properties can be exchanged and discussed. The organization is a director-run corporation with a representative of every member in good standing serving as a member of its Board of Directors. After presenting an overview of the organization, Robert will conduct a brainstorming session on how SURF and the Surplus Property Roundtable can work together.
Robert Colangelo is an entrepreneur that has founded several leading environmental organizations, including The National Brownfield Association in 1999, Green Sense Radio Show in 2009, and the Surplus Property Roundtable and Green Sense Farms in 2012. He is the author of three books on the subject of due diligence, Brownfields and the valuation of impaired properties and the co-author of the Rasher Colangelo formula for Brownfield Market Value. Robert created the STAMP program and assembled SWAT-like development teams to parachute in and provide redevelopment solutions for complex community redevelopment projects in the states of Illinois, Oregon, Ohio, New Jersey, New York, and California. He was awarded two U.S. EPA grants to provide technical asstiance to communities and used the funds to develop and instruct two workshops- attracting developer interest and investment to municipal brownfields and building sustainable communities that have been held in over 50 cities.
Triple Bottom Line in Cook County's Environmental Programs, Deborah Stone, Cook County Illinois Dept. of Environmental Control
Cook County Department of Environmental Control is refocusing to promote social and economic as well as environmental health. What parallels or linkages are there between these efforts and sustainable remediation and how can we build connections? Cook County is the first government in the Midwest to require reuse as well as recycling of building demolition/renovation waste. Reuse creates jobs, salvages valuable materials and community history, reduces energy and new materials consumption, saves landfill space, and reduces emissions from work sites and materials extraction/transport. It also fosters community revitalization, linking areas of high unemployment with jobs especially in areas with high rates of housing foreclosure. Cook County is linking departments such as environment, transportation, planning and community development, and local, county and regional governments, by targeting resources (including proposed brownfield planning and assessment) to transit- and cargo-oriented development sites. Strong participation by nonprofit organizations as well as local communities in planning and policy-setting strengthens these efforts.
Deborah Stone became Cook County's first Sustainability Officer in 2011. She is Director of the Cook County Department of Environmental Control, which regulates air emissions and engages communities in solid waste planning. Projects include an ordinance fostering recycling and reuse of building demolition debris and reducing county building energy use. She also teaches college environmental economics. As Deputy Director of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Deborah oversaw the State's first water supply planning and spearheaded Conservation Congress, a working partnership of hundreds of recreation and natural resources constituent groups. As Director of the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission, she helped landowners protect natural lands. At the Illinois Budget Office, she managed the capital budget and several agency operating budgets including IDOT. As Executive Director at the Metropolitan Planning Council, she broadened programs in housing, transit and walkable development to a regional scale. Deborah has a M.A. from the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy.
Sustainable Development as Common Sense, Jim Van der Kloot, U.S. EPA Region 5
Jim Van der Kloot will describe ongoing sustainable development efforts through the
HUD/DOT/EPA Partnership for Sustainable Communities within U.S. EPA Region 5.
Jim Van der Kloot works at U.S. EPA in Chicago and manages regional implementation of the HUD/DOT/EPA Partnership for Sustainable Communities. Jim grew up in the Brownfields program, having managed the startup of the City of Chicago's Brownfields Initiative in the early 1990s and later serving as the Brownfield Coordinator for U.S. EPA Region 5. Over the last 13 years, Jim's career has increasingly focused on sustainable development practices, such as green infrastructure and green buildings, and the coordination of governmental investments to maximize their overall benefit. Jim holds degrees in Biochemistry and Geology from Michigan State University.
Estimating Societal Impacts of a Remediation Project's Lifecycle using Environmental Footprint Evaluation Tools, Melissa Haclerode, CDM Smith
To measure the sustainability of a project's lifecycle, costs borne by society in terms of environmental, economic, and social impacts must be evaluated. Measuring the impacts of a project's lifecycle on society is challenging because the methods by which to measure and quantify this metric has not been established. One way to evaluate societal impacts of remediation projects is to calculate the societal cost of sustainability metrics using environmental footprint evaluation tools. Sustainability metrics generated by these tools include emissions from greenhouse gases, nitrous oxides, sulfur oxides and particulate matter, as well as total energy used and water consumption. The environmental footprint tools report these metrics in terms of measurement, such as tons and British thermal units. These terms of measurement can be translated to societal costs by inputing these negative externalities borne by society into dollars.
In this presentation, two case studies calculating the societal cost using environmental footprint sustainability metrics will be presented. The first case study uses results from an environmental footprint evaluation conducted to assess the impact of in situ thermal remediation as an interim response option at an urban brownfield site. The second case study uses results from an environmental footprint evaluation conducted to assess the differences among environmental impacts between a phased focused investigation approach and a conventional approach during site characterization. Both evaluations were conducted using the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) SiteWise program. Moving towards cost borne by society from sustainability metrics using environmental footprint evaluation tools is a step towards integrating the social impact of remedial activities into a project's budget. The value associated with the social impact can then be used to offset the impact itself.
Melissa Harclerode is a project manager at CDM Smith. She has over eight years of experience managing and performing environmental projects, with an emphasis on site assessments, remedial investigations, Brownfields, and vapor intrusion. Melissa is CDM Smith's Technical Resource Group Leader for Sustainable Remediation and is well versed in environmental footprint analysis tools. She is an active participant in SURF's technical initiatives. Melissa earned her BA in environmental science and biology from Muhlenberg College, MS in environmental science from Rutgers Newark/New Jersey Institute of Technology. She is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Environmental Management at Montclair State University with a focus in sustainable remediation. Melissa is also a certified EnvisionTM Sustainability Professional by the Institute of Sustainable Infrastructure.
Sustainable Remediation Work Group: Leveraging the Synergy of ITRC, API Energy, and SURF, Buddy Bealer, Shell
SURF members in the Sustainable Remediation Work Group are creating synergy with the Interstate Technology Regulatory Council and API Energy to coordinate and combine sustainable remediation communication and outreach efforts. The overarching goal is to establish common concepts, definitions, and language for sustainable remediation.
ASTM's Green Cleanup Standard Guide: Who Can Use It and How, Deb Goldblum, U.S. EPA Region 3, Heather Nifong, Illinois EPA, and Stephanie Fiorenza, BP
ASTM's greener cleanup task group anticipates release of its standard guide late this summer. This standard guide provides a step-by-step process for implementing, verifying and recognizing greener cleanups across regulatory and voluntary cleanup programs. Unique aspects of the standard include a comprehensive list of greener cleanup best management practices, definition of elements that "set a bar" for achieving a greener cleanup, and a robust verification structure. The ASTM greener cleanup standard was developed by representatives from industry, consulting, and State and U.S. EPA cleanup programs. The task group designed the standard for a variety of uses such as contracting, incorporating into program policy or referencing in legal documents.
Deb Goldblum has worked in the U.S. EPA's Mid-Atlantic Office (Region 3) RCRA Program for over 20 years. She is currently the national co-lead for EPA's Food Recovery Challenge, a program that promotes diversion of food waste from landfills, and has collaborated with EPA Headquarters on several national projects, including ASTM's Greener Cleanups Standard, the RCRA Groundwater Handbook, and the development of revitalization measures for cleanup sites. She received a B.S. in Geology from Haverford College and a M.S. in Geology from Temple University.
Heather Nifong is programs advisor for the Illinois EPA Bureau of Land. She coordinates rulemakings, counsels senior managers on policy and program development, serves as a brownfields liaison to the U.S. EPA, and promotes greener cleanups across regulatory programs. Heather is a member of the ASTM Greener Cleanup Standards team and, from 2007 to 2012, she chaired the ASTSWMO Greener Cleanups Task Force. Heather holds Master Degrees in Communication and Public Health from the University of Illinois at Springfield.
Stephanie Fiorenza, Ph.D., is a technology specialist for BP's Remediation Engineering and Technology group in Houston, Texas with primary responsibility for chlorinated solvent-impacted sites and bioremediation approaches throughout the U.S. Prior to joining BP in 2006, she managed pilot tests of innovative remediation technologies at U.S. Department of Defense sites. Stephanie maintains active research projects and develops site-specific solutions for remediation projects. She has been involved in sustainable remediation since the inception of SURF in 2006 and is the focal point for sustainable remediation efforts within BP. She is a member of the ASTM task group preparing guidance on Incorporating Sustainable Objectives into Cleanup and an internet trainer for ITRC's Green and Sustainable Remediation work group. Stephanie earned a bachelor's degree in Environmental Studies from Brown University and a doctoral degree in Environmental Science and Engineering from Rice University.
Panel Discussion: Regulatory Perspectives, Buddy Bealer (Moderator), Jennifer Borski (Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources), Brad Bradley (U.S. EPA Region 5), Deborah Goldblum (U.S. EPA Region 3), and Heather Nifong (Illinois EPA)
Jennifer Borski is a Hydrogeologist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources in the Remediation and Redevelopment Program. She has worked for 15 years overseeing the investigation and remediation of contaminant cases in the Fox Valley of northeast Wisconsin, including releases from dry cleaners, paper mills, metal plating facilities, manufactured gas plants, foundries and other historical industrial and commercial operations that are either responsible party-funded or state-funded. Jennifer has worked with U.S. EPA On-Scene Coordinators for Emergency Removal Actions in northeast Wisconsin and has served as project manager for the state-funded N. W. Mauthe Superfund site in Appleton, Wisconsin since 2002. She works with local municipalities in northeast Wisconsin for the redevelopment of brownfield sites, providing regulatory assistance, liability clarifications and exemptions as outlined in Wisconsin State Statutes, including the Voluntary Party Liability Exemption Program. Jennifer serves as the northeast region representative on the Wisconsin Initiative for Sustainable Remediation & Redevelopment (WISRR) Team, established in 2011, that works to create awareness and policy regarding green and sustainable cleanups throughout the state. She serves as the Wisconsin representative on the EPA/State Greener Cleanup Workgroup in Region 5 and is a government member of SURF, representing WDNR. Jennifer holds degrees in Geology and Mathematics from the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire.
Brad Bradley works for the U.S. EPA Region 5 in Chicago in the Brownfields program as a project officer/project manager. Brad is also the EPA Region 5 Superfund Greener Cleanup Coordinator. Brad has worked at EPA for over 29 years, including 22 years as a Superfund Remedial Project Manager. He received a B.S. in Environmental Engineering from the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology in 1982.
Deb Goldblum has worked in the U.S. EPA's Mid-Atlantic Office (Region 3) RCRA Program for over 20 years. She is currently the national co-lead for EPA's Food Recovery Challenge, a program that promotes diversion of food waste from landfills, and has collaborated with EPA Headquarters on several national projects, including ASTM's Greener Cleanups Standard, the RCRA Groundwater Handbook, and the development of revitalization measures for cleanup sites. She received a B.S. in Geology from Haverford College and a M.S. in Geology from Temple University.
Heather Nifong is programs advisor for the Illinois EPA Bureau of Land. She coordinates rulemakings, counsels senior managers on policy and program development, serves as a brownfields liaison to the U.S. EPA, and promotes greener cleanups across regulatory programs. Heather is a member of the ASTM Greener Cleanup Standards team and, from 2007 to 2012, she chaired the ASTSWMO Greener Cleanups Task Force. Heather holds Master Degrees in Communication and Public Health from the University of Illinois at Springfield.
FIVE-MINUTE FLASH TALKS: Updates on SURF Student Chapters, Erin Yargicoglu and Yamini Sadasivam (University of Illinois at Chicago), Emily Gonthier and Joshua Knapp (Clarkson University), Melissa Tracy (Colorado State University), and Ching-Hong Hsieh (Stanford University)
Members from four SURF student chapters will provide brief updates on the activities and needs of their chapter.
Erin Yargicoglu is pursuing her Ph.D. in Civil and Materials Engineering at UIC under Dr. Krishna Reddy with a focus on sustainable remediation. Her thesis work will be part of a larger National Science Foundation grant aimed at characterizing biochars for optimal methane oxidation and adsorption for potential application as sustainable and cost-effective cover amendments to reduce methane emissions from older surface impoundments with few or inefficient engineering controls. Erin and Dr. Reddy are also working with researchers from Argonne and the Chicago Park District on a grant from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to implement and monitor phytoremediation at Big Marsh, a degraded and contaminated wetland in the Calumet region (southeast Chicago). This two-year project will evaluate the effectiveness of 18 different native species for the removal or uptake of a number of contaminants from the soil.
Yamini Sadasivam is pursuing her Ph.D. in Civil Engineering at UIC under Dr. Krishna Reddy with a focus on geo-environmental aspects of remediation and sustainable remediation of landfill sites. Her thesis work will be part of a larger National Science Foundation grant aimed at characterizing different biochars for optimal methane oxidation and adsorption which can be a sustainable cover amendment option to mitigate methane emissions from landfills. Yamini received her Bachelor's in Civil Engineering from Anna University in Chennai, India. Her passion to gain hands-on research experience employing state-of-the-art technologies in the field of environmental engineering brought her to the U.S. She received a Master's degree in Civil Engineering from Tennessee Tech University. Her thesis publication was composed of her work designing tertiary sand filter systems using greens and media to reduce nutrient levels from wastewater.
Laboratory Testing of Passive Sampling of CO2 at Grade to Estimate Natural Attenuation Rates of Petroleum Spill in Groundwater, Melissa Tracy, Colorado State University
Colorado State University has developed a novel method to measure CO2 fluxes by capturing CO2 at grade using passive CO2 traps. This poster will focus on a laboratory validation study to compare the method estimates to known values and also to other widely used measurement methods. The data set will enable modeling the time-dependent processes of soil gas advection and diffusion.
Life Cycle Assessment Case Study of Remedial Alternatives at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard (Parcel F, Area IX/X), Ching-Hong Hsieh, Stanford University
Hunters Point Shipyard is a former naval shipyard located in San Francisco, California, adjacent to San Francisco Bay. The site was placed on the National Priorities List in 1989 and divided into six parcels (A-F). In 2008, a feasibility report for Parcel F was prepared. Because the report did not explicitly consider environmental externalities, a life cycle assessment (LCA) is being conducted on the proposed alternatives to remediate the South Basin in the area. The objectives of the work are to provide an additional evaluation criterion of the remedial alternatives and identify potential measures to reduce environmental externalities. Specifically, a process-based LCA is being conducted on three alternatives: dredge and fill, capping, and in-situ activated carbon amendment. The study system encompasses the site, transportation of materials to and from the site, and select off-site processes. Input parameters are being collected from the cost estimates reported in the feasibility study. Analysis is being conducted on the software SimaPro. The functional unit is one acre bioactive sediment meeting remediation goals.
The research is ongoing. Preliminary results indicate that, for the dredging alternative, the transportation of materials to and from the site and residual handling are the dominant source of airborne pollutants, greenhouse gasses, and energy consumption. These processes represent approximately 95% of the secondary environmental impacts of the dredge and fill option. For the in-situ amendment option, over 95% of the secondary impacts are related to the manufacture of activated carbon. These preliminary results suggest that design changes to increase on-site efficiency will not have a large effect on the overall impacts of the project. Preliminary analyses show that the activated carbon feedstock has a profound impact on environmental effects. For example, activated carbons with biogenic feedstocks result in 50% to 90% less carbon dioxide emissions per acre of treated sediment than coal-derived activated carbon.
Sustainable Phytoremediation of Big Marsh: A Severely Degraded Wetland in South Chicago, Erin Yargicoglu, University of Illinois at Chicago
Big Marsh is a severely degraded wetland in South Chicago that is impacted by both organic contaminants and heavy metals such as lead and arsenic. Historical industrialization in the area has led to widespread contamination in the shallow subsurface, preventing safe public use of the land and threatening sensitive ecological receptors. Because of the large aerial extent of the contamination and the presence of both organic and inorganic toxins, conventional remedies targeting a single contaminant class (e.g., in situ chemical oxidation; reactive barriers) are not appropriate at this site. Phytoremediation is a passive technology that has a demonstrated potential to remediate large sites with mixed contaminants, as both organic and inorganic contaminants can be degraded or removed, respectively, by plants.
In this study, 18 different plant species (10 grasses and herbs and 8 trees and shrubs) were planted in three distinct areas within the marsh, representing different ecotypes and degrees of metal and PAH contamination. Baseline soil samples were collected during planting to establish initial concentrations of lead, arsenic, and benzo(a)pyrene; at the end of a second year-long growing season, soil contaminant concentrations will be assessed again to determine if contaminant levels have been successfully reduced. Root, shoot, and leaf tissue will also be analyzed for the targeted contaminants to determine if plant uptake has occurred. Plant growth and survival will be monitored throughout the experiment and additional filler species will be chosen based on survival after the first growth season to restore a total of 48 acres of wetland. Data on species survival and phytoremediation effectiveness gathered in this project will inform future restoration efforts of similar former industrial sites throughout the Great Lakes metropolitan region.
Encapsulated Reactive Materials for Treatment of Arsenic in Drinking Water, Caitlin Barilec, Clarkson University
Heavy metals such as arsenic in drinking water negatively affect public health globally due to their toxicity. Arsenic in particular is not effectively removed using methods like ceramic filtration, one of the most prevalent water treating processes in the developing world. The use of inexpensive solid adsorbents, such as zeolite, hematite, activated carbon, and manganese, is a feasible and flexible method for treating heavy metals.
Feasibility Study of Ceramic Water Filtration in Removal of E. Coli as a Function of Burnout Material, Emily Gonthier, Clarkson University
This research involved testing ceramic disc filters for removal efficiency of both E. Coli and viruses while changing both burnout ratio and burnout material. In addition, the removal efficiency of postulate mechanisms between influent river water and bacterial/viral tap water suspension was compared.
Sustainability Assessment of Excavation and Disposal vs. In Situ Stabilization of Heavy Metal Contaminated Soil and a Superfund Site in Illinois, Marat Goldenberg, University of Illinois at Chicago
The Matthiessen and Hegeler Zinc smelting site in Illinois was designated as a Superfund site in 2005 for high heavy metal concentrations. Through multiple comprehensive field investigations, the Illinois EPA collected soil and sediment samples from the site and the adjacent residential community. It was found that zinc was present at elevated levels in all samples, and cadmium and lead were elevated in all but one sample. Other metals were found at elevated levels as well. The large surface area of the contaminated site, over 40 hectares (100 acres), poses a challenge for treatment. Two alternative treatment methods were evaluated for long-term sustainability – the traditional method of excavation, hauling and disposal in a hazardous waste landfill and an in situ remediation approach via solidification/stabilization. The life cycle assessment for each alternative was performed using SimaPro for energy inputs and environmental releases through all stages of manufacturing of materials needed for remedial operations, transportation, and remedial implementation. Due to the large quantity of contaminated soil that is required to be excavated and hauled to the nearest landfill, the in situ method of solidification/stabilization was the more sustainable option in the long-term, despite the initial energy inputs associated with manufacturing of cement and other materials needed for solidification/stabilization. Most of the energy is associated with the transport of contaminated soil to the off-site landfill. Other aspects associated with sustainability include social and economic impacts; both are discussed for the remedial options.
Investigation of Biochar from Wood Pellets as a Sustainable Landfill Cover Material, Yamini Sadasivam, University of Illinois at Chicago
Mitigation of landfill gas, comprising methane and carbon dioxide, is one of the critical aspects considered in the design of a landfill cover in order to prevent pollution and control global warming. In general, landfill cover soils can partially remove methane by the oxidation properties of methanotrophic bacteria present in them. The oxidizing capacity of these landfill cover soils may be improved by adding organic materials such as biochar, which increase adsorption and promote subsequent or simultaneous oxidation of methane. This study focuses on characterizing the biochar obtained from gasification of wood pellets for its methane adsorption and comparing the results with that of granular activated carbon (GAC). Physical-chemical characterization tests were conducted on biochar and GAC to determine the properties such as pH, oxidation-reduction potential, electrical conductivity, particle size distribution, moisture content, organic content, specific gravity, and water holding capacity. Batch and column adsorption tests were conducted using the biochar and GAC in order to determine the methane adsorption kinetics and the maximum methane adsorption capacity as a function of influencing factors such as exposed methane concentration, moisture content, and temperature. The methane adsorption kinetics and maximum methane adsorption capacity were quantified by the Lagergren's kinetic and nonlinear isotherm models respectively. From this study, it was found that the methane adsorption was strongly influenced by the material characteristics, exposed levels of methane concentration and the environmental factors such as moisture content and temperature.
Removal of Arsenic from Groundwater using Encapsulated Reactive Materials, Joshua Knapp, Clarkson University
Arsenic is a highly toxic element that, in recent decades, has been found in groundwater all over the world, including India, Chile and the United States. The arsenic levels in many of these areas exceed the World Health Organization drinking water standard. This research focuses on the use of reactive materials to remove arsenic from water through adsorption. The arsenic is adsorbed to reactive materials, including Red Mud (a by-product of aluminum manufacturing) and another inorganic waste product from an industrial process. Because placing these materials directly into the groundwater is not a viable option, these materials were encapsulated in Calcium Alginate beads. Calcium Alginate is a biocompatible hydro-gel that is easy to work with. The encapsulation with Alginate allows the immobilization of the reactive material, controls what comes in contact with the reactive material through size exclusion, and allows the integration with existing technologies for in situ remediation. In addition, the chemical and physical properties of the beads can be controlled, allowing capsules to be designed for a wide variety of applications. Altering the size of the beads allows use for both mobile groundwater remediation, as well as a packed bed system, with a tailored retention time. Data to date indicate that the process of immobilizing these materials in Alginate has minimal effect on sorption kinetics.
Quantifying Social Aspects of Sustainable Remediation: Classroom Examples, Krishna Reddy, University of Illinois at Chicago
Sustainability is the act of taking future generations into account in our present actions, demonstrating awareness that our actions do have an impact on others and the world at large. To design sustainable solutions or systems, one must consider the triple bottom line: environment, economy, and society. While environmental and economic aspects of sustainability can be quantified with reasonable confidence, the social aspects of sustainability are complex and more difficult to quantify. Several important social issues that can have a detrimental effect on society should be identified and quantified to demonstrate social sustainability. During the teaching of a graduate level course on sustainable engineering at UIC, students were assigned several projects that required evaluation of potential engineering solutions for sustainability, including social sustainability. Students had to identify several key social issues and quantify them to assess social sustainability of their engineering solutions. This presentation provides an overview of these classroom project examples. The quantification and measurement of positive and negative social impacts remains a work in progress; however, it is important to incorporate an objective basis to the highest degree practicable. Also, when negative, substantive impacts are identified, mitigation efforts should be made to minimize or avoid the impact. It is important to note that social sustainability quantification is not a goal in and of itself – rather, it is a process where a comparison and assessment can be made to allow for informed decisions about project design, implementation, and mitigation as necessary.
Dr. Krishna Reddy is a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Director of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering Laboratory at UIC. Dr. Reddy received his Ph.D. from the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago and worked in industry for a few years on major geotechnical and geoenvironmental projects prior to joining UIC. His research expertise involves: (1) remediation of contaminated soils, sediments, groundwater and stormwater; (2) integrated waste management, with a focus on waste recycling/reuse and waste containment systems; and (3) life-cycle assessment and sustainable engineering, with a focus on civil and environmental materials and systems. His research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the U.S. EPA, and industry. He is co-author of the well-known book titled "Geoenvironmental Engineering: Site Remediation, Waste Containment and Emerging Waste Management Technologies." He has received several awards and honors for excellence in teaching, research, and professional service, including the University of Illinois Scholar Award, the UIC Award for Excellence in Teaching, and the ASTM Hogentogler Award.
Measuring Social, Community, and Public Health Aspects of Milwaukee's Menomonee Valley Brownfields Redevelopment, Susan Kaplan, UIC School of Public Health
In addition to economic and environmental benefits, evidence indicates that social, community, and public health benefits can also result from brownfields remedation and redevelopment even though these benefits perhaps have not been as clearly defined or comprehensively studied. The Menomonee Valley in Milwaukee, a 1,200-acre brownfields area, has been redeveloped to maintain its primarily industrial nature. The project is unique because it involves a partnership with a university, a community health center, and others to identify and measure dozens of economic; environmental; and community, social, and health indicators of redevelopment impacts over many years. The community indicators being measured range from crime rate and ozone action days to public art installations and community recreation opportunities. This presentation will answer the following questions: How do we define the community/social aspect of sustainability in the brownfields context? What do such benchmarks tell us about the impacts of this particular project? How could such community indicators be applied to measuring impacts of other brownfield redevelopments around the country?
Susan Kaplan, J.D., is Research Assistant Professor at the School of Public Health and Institute for Environmental Science and Policy at UIC. Susan spent five years managing the brownfields program at the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation, where she managed Brownfields Assessment and Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund grants from U.S. EPA and conducted policy research and writing on brownfields and sustainable development issues. Among her projects at UIC, she leads a U.S. EPA-funded project to analyze best practices for sustainable redevelopment of brownfields and the economic, environmental and public health benefits of sustainable, as opposed to conventional, redevelopment of brownfield sites. Her other projects include research on the impact of sustainability in the health care sector and on best practices for increasing building deconstruction and building material reuse.
Re-inventing the Nation's Urban Water Infrastructure (ReNUWIt), Dick Luthy, Stanford University
ReNUWIt is an interdisciplinary, multi-institution NSF research center whose goal is to change the ways in which we manage urban water. Our vision is of safe, sustainable urban water infrastructures enabled by technological advances in natural and engineered systems, and informed by a deeper understanding of institutional frameworks. One example of ReNUWIt activities include research on unit process wetlands and bioinfiltration stations as passive treatment technologies for urban stormwater and water reuse systems. Another example is analysis of long-term groundwater quality challenges associated with water level rises in the San Fernando Valley as a result of changing urban groundwater management policies.
Remaking Civilization on Dirty Sites, Stephen Coyle, AIA, LEED AP, Town-Green
This presentation will review several applications of sustainable design principles to remedial actions in Mongolia and Gabon. Remedial actions in both cases balanced economic viability, conservation of natural resources and biodiversity, and the enhancement of the quality of life in surrounding communities:
Starting a Student Chapter at Stanford University: Challenges and Opportunities, YeoMyoung Cho, Yongju Choi, Chinghong Hsieh, Diana Lin, Jay Thompson
In Fall 2012, several students at Stanford University founded a student chapter of SURF. The group has grown to ten members, most of whom are highly involved with the group. The group typically meets twice a month to discuss business and SURF topics in current literature. This may include working on a case study, discussing academic journals, or presenting the results of independent study. The objectives of this talk will be to briefly describe the Stanford chapter, present the major opportunities we see for SURF student chapters, and discuss some of the challenges we encountered.
We believe that there is substantial opportunity to grow new SURF student chapters. While the remediation industry and regulatory bodies are placing increasing emphasis on secondary environmental impacts, course offerings on this topic are sorely limited. Thus, student SURF chapters can serve an important educational purpose by disseminating knowledge from professionals to students. Further, there are opportunities for independent research within student chapters. We found that emphasizing this potential for professional development and knowledge creation to be the most successful tactic to recruit new members.
The two biggest obstacles to any new student SURF chapter is the limited number of potentially interested students and unfamiliarity with the concept of sustainable remediation. As students interested in remediation are often a small subset of students enrolled in environmental engineering programs, finding directly interested students may be difficult. Active leadership is needed to recruit new members and effort should be made to recruit students from outside the traditional academic disciplines. Many, if not all, of the students joining a new SURF student chapter will not have an understanding of the basic concepts of sustainable remediation. A lack of relevant institutional knowledge within other student groups or the faculty exacerbates this problem. We believe that SURF can best address this problem by creating a "Suggested Reading" list for new chapters and by, where possible, matching local professional SURF members to student chapters to help build institutional knowledge within the student chapter.
Redefining Remediation Goals with Long‐term Monitoring Data, James, R. Hunt, University of California at Berkeley
Remediation of contaminated groundwater is essential when the contaminants have a current or potential impact on human health and compromise ecosystem functioning. After approximately 30 years of site investigations, many lessons were learned on what contaminants are likely to be persistent and transportable in the subsurface. With the implementation of remedial efforts, there is a body of knowledge developing on the effectiveness of natural attenuation and engineered approaches based on in situ and ex situ technologies. This presentation examines the monitoring data available at sites where contaminants were released to the subsurface starting in the 1950s, and site investigations and remedial efforts have continued for more than 20 years. Two related sites had Cr (VI) release to the subsurface from evaporative cooling wastes at natural gas compressor stations in the deserts of southern California. Another site involved the intentional release of dilute radioactive waste streams to seepage basins at a Department of Energy facility. These examples illustrate the advantages of a broader view of remediation as a system that requires data management, data visualization, and the development of models that predict long term effectiveness and permit scaling from one location to another.
Comprehensive Detection of Perfluorochemical Precursors at AFFF-Contaminated Sites for Improved Remediation Strategies; Erika Houtz, Meghan McGuire, Jennifer Field, Chris Higgins, and David Sedlak
Aqueous film forming foams (AFFFs) are complex mixtures of hydrocarbon and fluorocarbon surfactants that have been used by the military, airports, and municipalities since the 1960's to extinguish hydrocarbon- fuel based fires. At many military bases, extensive remediation for the hydrocarbon contaminants (e.g., BTEX compounds and TCE) has been undertaken without consideration of the AFFF fluorochemical compounds that are concurrently present. Where these foams have been deployed in unlined fire training areas, high concentrations of poly- and perfluorinated substances have been detected in groundwater. Among these contaminants, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) have received considerable attention due to concerns about their presence in drinking water.
In addition to PFOA, PFOS, and their shorter chained homologs, AFFF formulations contain more complex polyfluorinated compounds that can be converted into perfluorinated acids by chemical or biological transformation. We refer to these polyfluorinated compounds as perfluorinated acid precursors. Because these precursors may be transformed to their more mobile perfluorinated acid forms upon in situ chemical oxidation or enhanced bioremediation, it is important to characterize the precursor contamination prior to commencing remedial exercises. The direct measurement of these precursor compounds and their transformation products in field samples is limited by lack of available standards. In response to this challenge, a method was developed to indirectly quantify the concentrations of potential perfluorinated acid precursor compounds. Samples were exposed to hydroxyl radicals to convert precursors to perfluorinated carboxylic acids, which were then measured by LC-MS/MS. This precursor oxidation assay was used to measure precursor concentrations in groundwater and soil extracts from an AFFF-contaminated fire-training area where fire training occurred from the 1960s until 1990.
High concentrations of precursors were measured by the oxidation assay on soil samples and in groundwater in the fire training area. Only about half of the total precursor content in the AFFF-contaminated groundwater and soil could be identified with reference precursors, suggesting that typical analytical protocols would not capture most of the AFFF-related precursor contamination. Compared to AFFF formulations, there was an overall reduction in the concentration of precursors as a percentage of the total concentration of fluorochemicals. These results suggest that net production of perfluorinated acids has occurred over time in the fire training area from transformation of AFFF-derived precursors. In areas onsite that were extensively remediated with oxygen sparging wells, enhanced production of perfluorinated acids from precursor compounds was observed.
These results may inform subsequent cleanup efforts of AFFF-contaminated groundwater and soil by providing techniques to assess the scope of fluorochemical contamination and providing a model site to observe the consequences of several different remediation approaches on perfluorinated acid precursor transformation.
SURF BRAZIL, Sander Eskes
Since the 1980s, the existence of contaminated sites is an environmental issue that has been increasingly detected by environmental authorities in Brazil. Besides the federal level, the most important level of environmental legislation regarding contaminated land is the state level. The state governments in Brazil are in charge of the environmental management of contaminated sites through their environmental agencies. The most important state-level environmental agency in Brazil is that of São Paulo State, which is called CETESB (Companhia Ambiental do Estado de São Paulo). CETESB is widely considered as one of the more influential environmental agencies in Latin America. Brazil does not have yet a national public policy, approved by law, about contaminated sites or brownfield redevelopment. São Paulo State Law n. 13.577/2009 constitutes the first public policy issued in Brazil about contaminated sites management. This law adopted the risk assessment as an important decision making tool as far as the site intervention will be developed on the terms of the "fitness for use" approach. A specific fund, called FEPRAC, for contaminated sites can be used in cases where the site is considered an orphan site, i.e., where the responsible entity is not identified or localized. A clause was included in the São Paulo State Law that obliges applicants of remediation projects funded by FEPRAC to include a sustainability assessment together with the remediation plan. This can be seen as one of the first examples of a state endorsed initiative towards more sustainable remediation projects in Brazil. Brazil has a forum to promote and discuss sustainable remediation, called "Brazilian Sustainable Remediation Forum" (in Portuguese: Fórum Brasileiro de Remediação Sustentável). The first meeting of the forum was held on October 18. The organization of the forum can be loosely described as based on social networks, organized around discussion groups and without formal organizational structure. The forum closely cooperates with the São Paulo State Environmental Agency (CETESB), but has limited interaction with industries through branch organizations. The interaction with the public is through mouth-to-mouth advertising (advocacy), a blog and social networks. The forum is involved in policy making at the state level, through technical discussion groups and legislative forums.
Risk-informed and sustainable land management: basis for a fourth generation of Contaminated Land Management policy, Dominique Darmendrail, Common Forum on Contaminated Land in Europe
The complexity of contaminated site problems and of the solutions for solving them was not perceived immediately, even after major incidents discoveries (Love Canal /USA, Lekkerkerk / Netherlands). Policy perspectives concerning this contamination issue have changed gradually in the industrialised countries during the last 30 years.
The Contaminated Land policies evolved since the early 80s at the national level. Three types of national policies were successively generated:
Some European Member States have already decided to implement the RBLM concept in their national legal framework (e.g. the Netherlands, France, Austria) while other are just changing from the source control approach to risk assessment.
The regulatory environment at the European level is evolving rapidly and different European legal documents aim to take soil issues into consideration (i.e. IED, Industrial Emissions Directive or ELD, Environmental Liability Directive). In 2007 a Soil Protection Strategy has been published and a proposal of Directive is being discussed at the time. Hence a couple of Member States having advanced third generation approaches have main concerns on the recent developments of EU legislation related to soil issues and blocked the text at the European Council level.
Moreover besides directives addressing soil protection several other policies introduce further challenges like:
Therefore a concept for this 4th generation of policy should integrate three key principles: being risk-informed, managing adaptively and taking a participatory approach. It is important to note that sustainability needs to be incorporated alongside effective risk-management. A better integration of sustainability principles looks out to optimise inputs and outcomes in land remediation, thus also avoiding any trade-offs regarding health or environmental safety.
Building a Common Understanding on Sustainable Remediation: the SuRF-UK experience, Jonathan W.N. Smith, Chairman of SuRF-UK steering board
The Sustainable Remediation Forum-UK (SuRF-UK) is a collaborative, multi-stakeholder initiative to develop a framework, guidance and tools that facilitate more sustainable soil and groundwater remediation. SuRF-UK was established in 2007 and has a steering board incorporating members from government, industry, consultancy, academia and CL:AIRE.
In terms of sustainable development, contaminated land remediation has been generally thought to be a positive step, almost automatically considered sustainable. It brought land back into use, dealt with pollution problems and reduced development pressures on greenfield sites. In some countries, such as the UK, there was an idea that remediation should not take place without some regard to its costs, and frameworks and tools for cost benefit assessment were developed. However, the broader impact of the remediation process itself on environment, economy and society was not a major factor in decision making.
A number of formal and informal networks worldwide are now in process of debate on achieving sustainable development when remediating or regenerating of damaged sites or land. In the UK the Sustainable Remediation Forum UK (SuRF-UK) [www.claire.co.uk/surfuk] has published a framework for assessing the sustainability of soil and groundwater remediation. The goals of SuRF-UK's framework are to:
The principles of sustainable remediation have recently been included into revised statutory guidance for the Contaminated Land regime in England and Wales (EPA1990 Part IIa). SuRF-UK is now currently engaged in developing more detailed guidance and a series of case studies. SuRF-UK's approach is very practicable and SuRF-UK has an established track record in sharing and exchanging know-how and knowledge with related interests in other countries.
Assessment of sustainable remediation is defined by SuRF-UK as 'the practice of demonstrating, in terms of environmental, economic and social indicators, that the benefit of undertaking remediation is greater than its impact and that the optimum remediation solution is selected through the use of a balanced decision-making process'.
This is the first authoritative framework for assessing the sustainability of soil and groundwater remediation in the UK. While legislation and good practice guidance have encouraged remediation to contribute to sustainable development goals, no formal and authoritative framework has previously been published to guide such an assessment. It provides assessors with a means to undertake a sustainability assessment of soil and groundwater remediation, and to ensure that the remediation industry can directly and measurably contribute toward sustainable development goals.
The framework described in this document complements existing UK best practice guidance, such as the 'Model Procedures for the Management of Land Contamination' (CLR11), but is sufficiently generic to be applied elsewhere and under different regulatory systems. SuRF-UK believes that its publication and use will lead to more sustainable remediation practice in the UK and elsewhere.
Bardos, R. P., Bone, B. D. , Boyle, R., Ellis, D., Evans, F., Harries, N. and Smith, J.W.N. (2011) Applying Sustainable Development Principles to Contaminated Land Management Using the SuRF-UK Framework. Remediation, Spring 2011, 77-100. www.claire.co.uk/surfuk
CL:AIRE (2009) A review of published sustainability indicator sets: How applicable are they to contaminated land remediation indicator-set development? CL:AIRE, London, UK. www.claire.co.uk/surfuk
CL:AIRE (2010) A Framework for Assessing the Sustainability of Soil and Groundwater Remediation. March 2010 CL:AIRE, London, UK. www.claire.co.uk/surfuk
Sustainable Remediation Planning and Urban Redevelopment, Paul Favara, CH2M HILL
Construction new sporting venues provided the impetus for redevelopment of a large industrial area. The site had historically been used for a range of purposes including light retail and heavy industry. Sustainability was a key central theme to planning the redevelopment and completing the project. This presentation will provide an overview of the site redevelopment and focus on the sustainable remediation elements of the project. Key sustainable remediation topics that will be addressed include carbon dioxide emission avoidance, reuse of contaminated media, recycling of materials from demolished infrastructure, and development of risk-based cleanup levels to protect human health.
Hydrocarbon Sheens – Governing Processes and Innovative Solutions
Alison Hawkins, J. Zimbron, T. Sale, Colorado State University
Background / Objectives. Sheens from petroleum liquids often drive large and expensive remedial actions. In hindsight, these measures can be less effective than desired and can have secondary adverse environmental impacts. The focus of this research is to develop new, more sustainable approaches for preventing petroleum hydrocarbon sheens in surface water. Petroleum liquids in subsurface environments are commonly referred to as Light Non-Aqueous Phase Liquids (LNAPLs). Common LNAPLs include crude oil, diesel, gasoline, jet fuel, and lubricants. LNAPL releases typically move through the unsaturated zone to the water table where they spread laterally. A common release mechanism for surface water sheens is seeps associated with LNAPL movement along the air-water interface above the capillary fringe. Barriers are an emerging strategy for preventing sheens in surface water. Capillary and organoclay barriers are two examples of possible barriers that can be emplaced to intercept migrating LNAPL. Herein, capillary barriers are materials with a capillary rise that is higher than the adjacent formation. Fully saturated capillary barriers preclude LNAPL migration as an intermediate wetting phase. In contrast, organoclay barriers are oleophilic (high affinity for LNAPL) systems that preclude LNAPL migration by sorption.
Approach / Activities / Methods. Efforts to date have focused on laboratory-scale tank experiments filled with medium silica sand. Sand tank dimensions are 181cm by 38.5 cm by 5.3 cm. Fluorescing dyes are added to the water and LNAPL phases to enhance visualization of processes. Fluid levels are controlled using computer controlled pumps. Two computer controlled digital cameras are employed to take pictures at timed intervals. Capillary barrier experiments include a 4 cm thick vertical fine sand wall at the distal end of the tank. Diesel was added to the tank at a flow rate of 6 mL/hour. Concurrently, water levels were cycled through two high and low levels each day. As a second experiment, the above was repeated with the addition of two wells used for hydraulic LNAPL recovery. A third experiment was performed, identical to the first, with the exception of using a barrier consisting of a 1:3 organoclay:sand mix. The organoclay barrier was 20 cm thick. A fourth experiment, similar to the third, was performed with two organoclay barriers. The first barrier had 3 HDPE wedges spaced out in the organoclay barrier. The second organoclay barrier had 2 cm vertical gravel drain lines every 3 cm. The HDPE wedges and gravel drain lines were installed to prevent preferential flow.
Results / Lessons Learned. The first experiment showed that the capillary barrier precluded LNAPL migration for the duration of the experiment. The second experiment had the combined effect of pumping and the capillary barrier which allowed for the removal of LNAPL. LNAPL removal is a complementary approach that has the potential to extend the longevity of capillary barriers. The organoclay barrier, initially prevented LNAPL migration. However, with time, the LNAPL quickly moved across the air water interface in the organoclay barrier. The net result was preferential flow of LNAPL through organoclay barrier. The fourth experiment was constructed with two organoclay barriers, one with HDPE wedges and the other with drain lines. Both approaches improved the performance of the barrier. Preliminary results show that both the fine sand capillary barrier and the organoclay barrier are viable solutions for preventing the transport of LNAPL. The fine sand capillary barrier appears to be more effective than the organoclay barrier based on work to date. Further research is being conducted to improve both types of remedies. Supporting field work is ongoing in Rensselaer, NY, USA and Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.
Developing monitoring protocols and baseline data for assessment of a novel, full-scale combined sewer overflow treatment wetland pilot project in Syracuse, NY
Zeno Levy, Richard Smardon, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Background/Objectives. Combined sewer overflow (CSO) is a mixture of sewage and stormwater runoff that discharges into urban waterways when flow through "grey" municipal sewers exceeds conveyance capacity. Pairing different constructed treatment wetland designs in tandem provides a suite of "green" infrastructure alternatives that can be adapted to fit a variety of urban ecological niches.
Approach/Activities. At the behest of Onondaga County, CH2M HILL and CHA conceived plans for a 2-acre, pilot treatment system to mitigate CSO into Harbor Brook, Syracuse. The design showcases three wetland modules (floating wetland island, vertical downflow, surface flow) in three interchangeable flow configurations (series, parallel, series-parallel), following grit and floatables pre-treatment.
Results/Lessons Learned. SUNY-ESF developed a monitoring plan for this novel pilot project. Here, we present our challenges in developing an adaptive monitoring plan with regards to: (1) experimental design, (2) sampling methods, and (3) sampling targets. We also discuss how the pilot project and monitoring program could be used to help institutionalize monitoring protocols and standards for "green" CSO treatment. Our experimental design and monitoring data will be used to recommend future treatment wetland expansion projects in Onondaga County.
CO2 Traps – A New Tool for Measuring Natural LNAPL Loss Rates at Petroleum Impacted Sites
Kevin McCoy, Julio Zimbron, Tom Sale, Colorado State University; Mark Lyverse, Chevron
Background/Objectives. Light non-aqueous phase liquids (LNAPLs) are commonly found beneath petroleum facilities. Despite known issues (e.g. cost, limited effectiveness, waste handling), hydraulic LNAPL recovery is a common default remedial action at many LNAPL sites. However, recent studies suggest that natural LNAPL losses are significant and may rival hydraulic recovery technologies. Therefore, it has become clear that accurately estimating natural LNAPL loss rates is a crucial step in developing efficient and effective (i.e. sustainable) remediation strategies at LNAPL sites. In support of a need for simple and robust methods to estimate natural LNAPL losses, and to address issues with several current methods, Colorado State University has developed a novel integral CO2 trap. The device directly measures fluxes of CO2 (the end product of petroleum mineralization) at grade, which are then used to calculate natural LNAPL loss rates. Field surveys using CO2 traps can provide important evidence of natural LNAPL losses in support of developing sustainable remediation strategies at LNAPL sites. This talk will provide an introduction to development of the CO2 traps, present results from laboratory testing and several field surveys, discuss fundamental processes controlling natural LNAPL losses and CO2 flux measurements, and highlight ongoing related research.
Approach/Activities/Methods. CO2 traps utilize a granular sodalime sorbent material that captures CO2 by converting Ca(OH)2 and NaOH to CaCO3 to Na2CO3. Captured CO2 is then quantified by mass loss during acidification. The CO2 trap design consists of two sorbent elements housed in a trap body that is fit to a receiver at grade. The lower element captures soil CO2 efflux. The upper element intercepts atmospheric CO2 to allow pressure equilibration and avoid overestimating soil CO2 efflux. Laboratory tests were performed to evaluate the ability of the sorbent media to quantitatively capture CO2 and to evaluate sorption capacity. Additional laboratory testing was performed to evaluate the ability of the traps to accurately measure CO2 fluxes. Field surveys were performed at seven sites to estimate natural LNAPL losses under a range of LNAPL types and porous media conditions.
Results/Lessons Learned. Seven rounds of closed system sorbent media testing were analyzed by comparing mass captured (CO2/sorbent) to mass delivered (CO2/sorbent) to check for quantitative CO2 sorption and evaluate sorption capacity. Confidence intervals for the slope and intercept of the resulting regression line were not significantly different from 1 and 0, respectively. The data appear linear up to the sodalime manufacturer's estimated sorption capacity of 30% CO2 by mass. These results indicate that the media is capable of quantitatively capturing CO2. Results of seven rounds of open system tests of the trap design were analyzed by comparing measured CO2 fluxes (from traps) to input CO2 flux through a large soil-packed column (estimated from known gas flow rate and cross sectional area of the column). Confidence intervals for the slope and intercept of the resulting regression line were not significantly different from 1 and 0, respectively. These results indicate that the traps are effective at quantifying CO2 flux. Field surveys were performed at seven LNAPL sites. Deployment locations were selected to survey a broad range of LNAPL types and porous media conditions. Surveys were repeated over several time periods to assess seasonal trends. CO2 traps were deployed over the LNAPL smear zones and unimpacted background locations in order to separate naturally occurring (background) CO2 efflux from that associated with natural LNAPL losses. Calculated LNAPL losses ranged from 100s to 10,000's of gallons per acre per year. Measured CO2 fluxes and calculated LNAPL loss rates show distinct spatial and seasonal variability.
Pore Network Changes in Shales: Implications to Remediation
Katherine M. Mouzakis, Colorado School of Mines
Background/Objectives. The mechanism of CO2 dissolution is studied in two types of shale, the Gothic shale and the Marine Tuscaloosa shale. This mechanism creates carbonic acid and reduces brine pH which results in a chemical disequilibrium that drives mineral dissolution and/or precipitation. These reactions can change the controlling characteristics of the pore network. Differences in pore shape and size can cause variation in capillary properties and fluid transport. These mechanisms become integral if the shale is used as an impermeable layer to prevent migration of subsurface fluids. Understanding how the pore network of shales and other rock formations react with various fluids and gases is important to industries such as carbon sequestration or remediation that are concerned with movement through pore networks.
Approach/Activities. Laboratory fixed-volume reactor experiments at temperatures of 160˚C and 150 bars were performed on the systems of brine-shale and brine-shale-CO2. Unreacted, reacted samples with brine, and reacted samples with brine and CO2 were analyzed with field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), small angle neutron scattering (SANS), and with gas adsorption techniques to determine physical changes to pore networks.
Results/Lessons Learned. FESEM provided high resolution images supporting dissolution and precipitation of minerals in both samples with a greater occurrence of dissolution and precipitation in the Gothic shale. New circular and slit-like pores were imaged in the Gothic shale, however new pores were not evident with the FESEM in the Marine Tuscaloosa shale. SANS experiments provided information on the porosity, surface area, and pore size distribution of connected and unconnected pores in the shale samples. An increase in porosity in connected pores occurred in the Gothic shale while a decrease in porosity in connected pores occurred in the Marine Tuscaloosa shale. A comparison of unreacted, reacted with brine, and reacted with brine and CO2 samples provided a novel method of determining experimental artifacts from using synthetic brine in the laboratory experiments. This combination of controlled laboratory experiments, neutron scattering and high-resolution imaging provided new detailed information on changes to pore networks of typical shales that lie above geologic carbon sequestration sites. The altered pore network and associated changes to permeability highlight how reactions with multiphase fluids may result in an actual structural change to a geologic system. A better understanding of these changes may be integral in enhancing the sustainability of certain projects.
Dump the Pump: Replacing Pump-and-Treat with an Engineered Attenuation Zone
Mitchell R. Olson and Tom Sale, Colorado State University); Ben McAlexander and Justin Pruis, Trihydro Corp.
Background/Objectives. Colorado State University (CSU), Trihydro, and a corporate sponsor have been collaborating on a field demonstration of an Engineered Attenuation Zone (EAZ). The demonstration is being conducted at a former refinery site in the western US. Although all refinery-related infrastructure has been removed, soils beneath the site remain impacted with petroleum hydrocarbons. Existing remedies in place at the site include a sheet-pile wall and pump-and-treat system. The objective of the EAZ demonstration is to evaluate a passive remediation system that could replace the current pump-and-treat system. The vision is that impacted soils down-gradient of the LNAPL zone could be replaced by clean soils that are engineered to enhance natural attenuation processes. To evaluate this approach, CSU, Trihydro and a corporate sponsor are collaborating on a pilot-scale field demonstration.
Approach/Activities/Methods. The EAZ demonstration comprises three flumes measuring 40-ft long, 2-ft wide, and 6-ft tall. The primary flume backfill material consists of uncontaminated sandy-gravel borrow material collected from the site. Flume 1 contains site materials admixed with gypsum and taconite as supplemental electron acceptors. Flume 2, which was designed to evaluate treatment under aerobic conditions, contains unamended backfill with an oxygen emitter well. Flume 3 contains only unamended backfill material. Source water originates from an on-site monitoring well. A peristaltic pump transmits groundwater directly from the well to the flumes. The inlet water contains approximately 500 µg/L benzene and 10 to 50 µg/L toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes. The source water also contains elevated levels (900 mg/L) of sulfate.
Results/Lessons Learned: In Flumes 1 and 3, BTEX concentrations are reduced to detection limits within the first 8 to 24 feet, corresponding to residence times of about 6 to 18 days, respectively. Flumes 1 and 3 have produced similar treatment patterns, indicating that sulfate amendment may not be required when inlet water already contains high sulfate levels. In Flume 1, BTEX concentrations are reduced to detection limits within two feet of the oxygen diffuser well, corresponding to a residence time of less than 1.5 days. However, a concentration rebound, observed in Flume 1 downgradient of the oxygen diffuser well, indicates a possible treatment limitation due to a non-uniform distribution of oxygen within the flume. Finally, results have indicated that the system is sensitive to inlet water temperatures. System upsets have occurred in the aerobic and anaerobic flumes during winter months as inlet water temperatures drop to approximately 8°C.
Results to date indicate that the EAZ approach may provide a viable alternative to the current pump-and-treat system. In addition to the field demonstration, ongoing evaluation activities focus on economics, feasibility, and sustainability of a full-scale implementation.
The Development and Use of Remotely Operated Nutrient Sensors for in-situ Water Monitoring
Elysia Taylor, Dr. James Bonner, Dr. Temitope Ojo, Clarkson University
Background/Objectives. Aquatic ecosystems with high nutrient levels usually contain an abundance of flora and fauna. However, excess phosphorus can lead to wild growth of algae and other plant life. This causes a drastic decrease in dissolved oxygen levels, creating a hypoxic environment. Aquatic species, which are sensitive to dissolved oxygen levels, are severely affected in hypoxic regions. This process is called eutrophication, and is a leading cause of biodiversity loss in aquatic environments. Although eutrophication can occur naturally, anthropogenic factors, such as agricultural runoff and sewage effluent, are leading contributors in most cases.
The existing methods of phosphorus testing can be both time consuming and expensive. Currently, remote nutrient sensors are very expensive and, therefore, it is often not affordable to employ more than one in an area. The goal of this project is to create an inexpensive total phosphorus analyzer that can take real time measurements and be accessed remotely. This would allow for a much more efficient and accurate determination of phosphorus levels over time and make multiple testing points within a site more economically feasible.
Real-time data acquisition can be greatly beneficial to many types of remediation projects. When the reduction of nutrients is the goal of a remediation project, in situ sensors can indicate how successful the project is without the use of invasive soil cores or offsite laboratory tests. Some remediation techniques include chemical reactions that produce phosphorus as a byproduct. If remotely operated sensors are used in these situations, they can provide instant feedback about the creation of excess phosphorus. In both cases, sensors can be a source of information for feedback loops that control a number of variables such as reactant dose and flow rates. Real-time data reporting creates a more sustainable remediation environment by minimizing the use of materials and cost while simultaneously improving efficiency.
Approach/Activities. In order for total phosphorus to be detected, two chemical reactions must take place within the instrument. First, an oxidation digestion reaction converts organically bound phosphorus into orthophosphate. Second, a Molybdenum blue colorimetric reaction occurs, allowing for the photometric detection of light transmittance that inversely correlates with the concentration of orthophosphate. Therefore, the design for the instrument must be two-fold. The digestion reaction takes place in a UV-assisted heater where the sample and reagent are held at 80°C for 10 minutes. The stream is exposed to UV light at 254nm for 30 seconds in order to speed up radical formation. At this point, all of the phosphorus in the sample exists in the form of orthophosphate and will turn blue in the presence of stannous chloride reagents. A small spectrophotometer with a 5cm path length is used to measure the transmittance of light at 660nm. By comparing the transmittance to a calibration curve, the concentration of total phosphorus can be determined.
Results/Lessons Learned. The assembly of the sensor is complete, and the testing phase is under way. Before field tests can be done, the bench model must show high rates of digestion and repeatability. Thus far, the bench model is showing approximately 90% digestion. The range of detection is 20-140 µg P/L. This almost fully encompasses the range of phosphorus levels that exist in natural waters (10-100µg/L) as well as levels that indicate a risk of eutrophication (>100µg/L). A cost and energy efficient nutrient analyzer can help us to understand the impact of environmental projects on natural waters by allowing for multi-point real-time data acquisition. This allows for more accurate modeling of remediation sites as well as point and non-point sources of nutrient pollution.
Decision Support System for Modeling Matrix Diffusion Processes
Jennifer Wahlberg, Colorado Sate University; Shahla Farhat, GSI Environmental Inc.; Azadeh Bolhari, Colorado State University; Tom Sale, Colorado State University; Chuck Newell, GSI Environmental Inc.
Background/Objectives: Groundwater contaminant transport research of the past two decades has advanced the concept of contaminant transport via advection and transverse diffusion in heterogeneous media. This concept is driving new strategies for managing contaminants in source zones and plumes. Unfortunately, models addressing transport via advection and transverse diffusion are not readily available to the practicing community. In response to this need, GSI Environmental, Colorado State University, and Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) are developing a Matrix Diffusion Toolkit that will allow practitioners to model contaminant transport under conditions dominated by advection and transverse diffusion. This poster introduces the Matrix Diffusion Toolkit with emphasis given to a two layer scenario developed in Sale et al., 2008. The toolkit will be available as downloadable public domain software in Fall 2012.
Approach/Activities/Methods: The toolkit has two components, the Square Root Model and the Dandy-Sale Model. The Square Root Model (one-dimensional) builds on work by Parker et al., 1994 and Sale et al., 2007. The Dandy-Sale Model (two-dimensional) is an analytical model in which a low permeability (low k) layer (e.g., clay) is overlain by a more transmissive layer (e.g., sand). A thin pool DNAPL source is introduced at the contact between the two layers upgradient of x=0. The DNAPL source is active for a given amount of time, τ. While the source is active, forward diffusion occurs from the transmissive layer to the low permeability layer. After the source is exhausted (t ≥τ), back diffusion occurs from the low k layer to the transmissive layer.
Results/Lessons Learned: Model applications allow portrayal (as a function of time and position) of:
Current and future applications of the toolkit include:
Optimization of an Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor for Decentralized Communities
Dustin Whynman and Dr. Christopher Bellona, Clarkson University Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Background/Objectives. Anaerobic digestion has been used to treat various waste streams for decades. Anaerobic biological treatment technologies have recently received significant research interest, as the biogas produced can be a source of energy. In municipal wastewater treatment, traditional aerobic processes are commonly employed due to shorter hydraulic retention times (HRT) and better overall treatment compared to anaerobic treatment options. For decentralized communities however, proper wastewater treatment can be a major issue, which necessitates the development of robust and low-energy treatment processes.
Anaerobic digesters are typically operated with a HRT of 15-30 days which requires a large reactor footprint. AnMBR systems allow for retention of solids in the reactor while allowing the treated water to be removed from the system. This decoupling of the solids retention time (SRT) from the HRT greatly reduces the HRT required for treatment, and subsequently the system footprint. In addition, AnMBRs can produce a superior quality effluent compared to traditional anaerobic digesters. Membrane fouling has been a major issue in AnMBR operation, and in order to mitigate fouling, AnMBR systems have been operated at low permeate flux and have traditionally employed hollow fiber membranes. These membranes are typically sparged with biogas, which requires energy to compress and deliver the biogas to the membrane surface. The objective of this project was to design, optimize and evaluate an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) for the treatment of municipal and food waste. For this project, a ceramic membrane was evaluated due to robustness towards fouling and ability to be cleaned at high pressures without biogas sparging.
Approach/Activities. The AnMBR system employed a ceramic cross-flow micro-filtration membrane with a 0.2 μm nominal pore size. As opposed to backwashing, the membrane was cleaned with frequent high-pressure back-pulses. The reactor was seeded with sludge obtained from the local wastewater treatment plant. The reactor was initially fed at a 30 day HRT and the feeding volume was gradually increased to a 10 day HRT. Biogas production was measured and biogas analyzed for composition to determine the efficiency of methane production. Reactor digestate and the membrane permeate water quality was evaluated to determine treatment efficiency which included routine analysis of chemical oxygen demand, total organic carbon, total nitrogen, and turbidity.
Results/Lessons Learned. The main goal of this project was to determine the optimum reactor HRT for waste treatment and biogas production. The secondary goal was to determine the optimum cross-flow velocity and back-pulsing frequency to combat fouling. Preliminary results indicate that the AnMBR configuration provides good COD removal at short HRTs. This poster will summarize the fabrication of the AnMBR, methods used to evaluate the reactor, and preliminary results from operation including membrane effluent water quality, biogas production, and indicators of membrane fouling.
Zebra Mussels: A nuisance or A Valuable Asset to Aquatic Systems?
Theodore D. Williams, Mario Montesdeoca, Charles T. Driscoll, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Syracuse University, Syracuse NY; Michael Spada, Upstate Freshwater Institute, Syracuse NY
This study investigates the temporary and permanent sequestration of total mercury (THg) from different sampling sites in the Seneca River and Harbor Brook of the Onondaga Lake. Temporary THg concentrations were as high as 106 ng/g and 1426 ng/g in zebra mussels' tissues in the Seneca River and Onondaga Lake respectively. Zebra mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) are a group of invasive species that are known to be effective filter feeders. These mussels have been acknowledged as valuable monitoring organisms and accumulators of heavy metals (Voets et al. 2009). Zebra mussels (5-25mm length) were collected between 2009 and 2010 from the highly mercury contaminated Onondaga Lake and the channelized Seneca River that flows from west to east before flowing into the Onondaga Lake and continue flowing north.
Because of the disparity of the concentrations among Zebra Mussels' tissues and shells, a digestion procedure was used followed by cold Vapor Atomic Fluorescence Spectrometry for the shells and total solid analyses by Atomic spectrometry for the tissues. The freeze-milled shells were prepared for a non-sediment based mercury leaching procedure for 15, 30, 90 and 120 days to evaluate the leaching rate and conditions of THg release by zebra mussels' shells after deposition. The lake water extraction solutions selected the leaching experiment represented normal lake water chemistry and extreme chemistry conditions to allow the most favorable mercury leaching possibilities.
Based on extreme leaching experimental conditions, 92.9 percent of the THg in zebra mussels' shells was permanently retained. Based on the application of the results, the permanently sequestered Hg by the zebra mussels were at the Seneca River Cut and Onondaga Lake.
Slow Release Permanganate Candles for Sustainable in situ Chemical Oxidation
Gerlinde Wolf and Michelle Crimi, Clarkson University
Background/Objectives: Chemical contamination of the subsurface is a public health challenge worldwide and it is essential that affected areas be addressed through remediation and treatment efforts. Often, chemical contamination exists in widely dispersed, low concentration contaminant plumes, which pose a great challenge to the remediation industry and are very costly to clean up. Common environmental contaminants of this nature are chlorinated solvents such as trichloroethylene (TCE), which pose a threat to human and environmental health. Historically, remediation of TCE has been a difficult and environmentally demanding process due to the compound's recalcitrant properties. Long-term, low cost in situ treatment options for chlorinated solvents would be highly desirable for many sites with low levels of contamination where traditional oxidant injection is not physically or economically feasible.
Recently there has been great interest in developing sustainable remediation techniques which strive to maximize the environmental, social, and economic benefits of the project. One such sustainable remediation technique combines passive in situ chemical oxidation (ISCO) with sustained release permanganate candles (SRPCs) which degrade contaminants into innocuous byproducts. ISCO using SRPCs has the potential to reduce energy consumption, site disruption, and personnel time spent at the field site. In this passive oxidation system permanganate is distributed throughout the media via diffusion and dispersion, therefore no injecting or pumping of liquid oxidants is required. Additionally, a reactive zone is created and has the potential to destroy contaminants for extended periods (e.g., months to years). Once SRPCs are inserted into the ground they can be left at the site and only periodic monitoring is needed.
The objective of this research is to develop a SRPC design tool to simulate SRPC release kinetics and permanganate reaction and distribution over time to guide full-scale design. Several existing SRP models offer a good starting point to this research; however the potential effects of inner-candle tortuosity on permanganate delivery have not yet been adequately characterized. Our research will investigate how tortuosity could affect permanganate release and therefore oxidation of contaminants and incorporate these effects into the SRPC design tool.
Approach/Activities: The focus of this project is to understand and develop a model of SRPC release kinetics and show how the kinetics may evolve over time due to the change in candle morphology (i.e. tortuosity). Parameters that need to be determined are (1) how tortuosity will affect permanganate flux, (2) how to incorporate permanganate release rate into the advection dispersion reaction equation, and (3) how to model the permanganate natural oxidant demand of the system. Additionally, the model will address other key variables including how a SRPC may behave in a lower permeability media and ways to optimize the initial SRPC radius, reducing the number of candles required and thereby reducing cost.
Expected Results: Our research will expand upon existing models of SPRC release kinetics by including the impacts of candle tortuosity. We expect this research will enhance the understanding of sustained oxidant release and therefore make sustainable remediation efforts more accessible. The outcome of this research will be a user-friendly design too that will aid in full-scale sustainable remediation design and field scale implementation. This tool will help to estimate the radius of influence of permanganate candles, the number of permanganate candles, and lifespan of oxidation processes, and will attempt to provide a cost estimate of the project. Results of this investigation will allow a better understanding of SRP treatment potential in variety of field settings, and will illustrate how permanganate release rates may change over time.
Sustainable Biocover for Methane Oxidation at Landfill Sites
Poupak Yaghoubi, Bala Yamini Sadasivam, Krishna Reddy, Dept. of Civil and Materials Engineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL
Background. Municipal solid waste landfill sites are one of the largest anthropogenic sources that emit greenhouse gases like CH4 and CO2 into the atmosphere due to anaerobic degradation of organic matter. Thus, mitigation of landfill gases(LFG) is one of the main aspects considered while designing a landfill site in order to prevent pollution and control global warming. Installation of gas collection systems is the most recent technology that is employed to control methane gas emissions from landfill sites. However, it is not economically feasible to install gas collection systems in old or abandoned landfills with low CH4 production and even in new landfill sites with advanced collection systems, fugitive emissions are a problem. Therefore, it is necessary to develop cost-effective methods for mitigating LFG emissions.
In general, landfill cover soils can partially remove CH4 by the oxidation properties of methanotrophic bacteria. The oxidizing capacity of landfill cover soils can be improved by adding organic rich sludge and composts like biochar. Biochar is a carbon-rich product obtained when plant-based biomass is heated in a closed container with little or no available oxygen. Amendment of biochar to landfill cover soil can change the basic physical-chemical characteristics of the landfill cover and affect the transport behavior of gases. An optimum cover soil composition is critical in enhancing the methanotrophic activities for substantial reduction in CH4 emissions. In order to understand the principle mechanisms involved in methane mitigation within a biochar amended landfill cover, it is necessary to establish the characteristics, adsorption and oxidation behavior of biochar by conducting extensive research.
Objectives. The goals of this work were to: 1) Investigate the characteristics that change as a result of amendment of biochar to landfill cover soil, 2) Investigate the landfill gas adsorption capacity of biochar and biochar amended cover soil, 3)Characterize the main factors that affect methane oxidation within the biochar amended landfill cover, 4) Test the adaptability of biochar amended landfill cover to environmental conditions, such as moisture content and temperature, and 5) Study the mechanisms of methane oxidation and adsorption within biochar amended landfill cover to obtain kinetic parameters of the mitigation process.
Approach. Chemical and physical characteristics and geotechnical properties of soil, biochar, and biochar amended soil were determined. An analysis of moisture content, organic content, total organic carbon content, cation exchange capacity (CEC), total nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium (NPK), pH , density, particle size distribution, Atterberg limits, compaction, hydraulic conductivity, compressibility and shear strength analysis were conducted with biochar alone, soil alone, and biochar amended soil. Both column and batch experiments were conducted using soil alone, and soil amended with biochar to quantify the effects of biochar amended on degradation of CH4. The LFG composition was analyzed before and after transport through the columns at different time periods and the material from the columns was transferred into the bottles for batch testing after 4 months. The effect of methane adsorption to biochar and biochar-amended soil was studied, which provided favorable conditions for methanotrophic oxidation to improve degradation within the cover.
Conclusions. The amendment of biochar to soil increased pH, permeability, and organic content of soil, thus facilitating the growth and multiplication of methanotrophs. It increased the shear strength of the soil and decreased its compressibility. Biochar facilitates the oxidation process by enlarging the oxidation layer of landfill cover. The adsorption of methane by biochar amended landfill cover soils together with the degradation of methane by the methanotrophs which live within biochar pores will make this a sustainable process to mitigate LFG emissions.
Green and Sustainable Remedy Selection & Design for Indian Ridge Marsh, Chicago, IL
Erin Yargicoglu, Jennifer Welch, Gregory Bourgon, Dr. Krishna Reddy, Dept. of Civil and Materials Engineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL
Background. The remediation and restoration of heavily industrialized former wetlands and mesic prairies in the Great Lakes region pose several special challenges due to: 1) the widespread and heterogeneous distribution of contaminants; 2) the variety of contaminant classes present; 3) complex hydrogeologic regimes due to extensive and variable industrial filling and dredging throughout the Calumet region and a lack of proper hydrologic controls on-site; and 4) the presence of sensitive ecological receptors and habitats, including nesting areas for several endangered and threatened bird species (e.g. black crowned night heron).
The study site, Indian Ridge Marsh (IRM), located in southeast Chicago, IL, is one of several degraded wetlands in the Calumet region that are slated for remediation and redevelopment as part of the Calumet Open Space Reserve (COSR) initiative. IRM has significant and widespread historic contamination, including documented impacts to soil, sediments, surface water and groundwater. Multiple contaminant classes are present on-site including: heavy metals, pesticides, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and one observed instance of an LNAPL plume containing petroleum hydrocarbons. The contaminated areas that posed the greatest risk to human and ecological health were identified through comparison of measured sample concentrations to risk based screening levels (RBSLs) established in the State of Illinois Administrative Code, Tiered Approach to Corrective Action Objectives (TACO) and the Calumet Area Ecotoxicological Protocol (CAEP). Areas of Concern (AOCs) were established based on the geographic distribution of samples with contaminant levels exceeding established RBSLs.
Objectives. The goals of this work were to: 1) assess historically documented contamination based on data collected for previous Phase I & Phase II ESAs at IRM; 2) identify AOCs on-site that present the greatest risks to human and ecological receptors to determine the extent and intensity of remedial treatments required to meet established cleanup requirements; 3) evaluate the remedial options available based on applicability, cleanup efficiency and sustainability metrics; and 4) recommend an appropriate remedial strategy and present a viable plan for sustainable restoration of IRM to the CPD for consideration.
Methodology. Remedial options for both soil and groundwater treatments were evaluated in terms of: sustainability; cost; applicability to on-site contaminants; overall site disturbance; and potential impacts to existing habitats for sensitive ecological receptors and native plant species. Technologies considered include: excavation, solidification and stabilization, in-situ chemical oxidation, groundwater pump-and-treat, in-situ bioremediation, and enhanced biostimulation in conjunction with phytoremediation. Appropriate remedial options were subjected to a detailed evaluation using two models for Green and Sustainable Remediation (GSR): SiteWise™ and the Sustainable Remediation Tool™ (SRT).
Conclusions. Those analyses, coupled with qualitative evaluation of sustainability based on California's Green Remediation Evaluation Matrix (GREM), lead us to our final remedy selection: phytoremediation in conjunction with enhanced biostimulation in areas with severely degraded soils. Based on site-specific conditions (e.g. hydrogeologic regime, heterogeneous soils and surficial sediments, sensitive wetland habitats) and future site use, several remedial alternatives were disqualified. Best Management Practices obtained from Illinois EPA's Greener Cleanups Matrix and the Minnesota Pollution Control Board for selected technologies are integrated in our recommended remedial strategy, which incorporates plant species present on-site and restoration of native vegetation with minimal site disturbance.
Integrating Social Aspects into Sustainable Remediation
Pat Serie, EnviroIssues
Renee Dagseth, EPA Region 10
The presenters will share a case study of the Lower Duwamish Waterway cleanup process to illustrate what kinds of social issues arise on a complex, urban-environment cleanup site. The presentation will describe approaches used to engage diverse interests in all stages of the cleanup decision-making process and lessons learned from that 10-year process.
Economic Perspectives on Superfund Site Remediation
Dave White, King County Wastewater Treatment Division
This presentation offers some perspectives on the economic aspects of site remediation. It includes observations on long- and short-term economic benefits and impacts, and concerns and strategies for successful remediation with the regional economy in mind.
Walking the Talk: SURF's Nine-Step LCA Process Tested
Dave Ellis, DuPont
A pilot study to incorporate sustainability analysis in the remedy selection process presented an ideal opportunity to test drive the new nine step process for performing footprint analysis and life cycle assessments. An estimated 154 kilograms of perchlorethylene are to be remediated in approximately 520 cubic yards of soil from multiple locations, primarily located along former wood-lined trenches. Four remedial action options (i.e., dig and haul, aeration, phytoremediation, and in-situ reduction) were identified and evaluated along with a no-action baseline using SimaPro™ life-cycle software. Using the SURF nine step process worked well on this site, providing additional insights into each potential remedy and robust guidance for use during the remedy selection process.
Colorado State University Welcomes SURF
Dr. Wade Troxel, Associate Dean of Engineering and Director of Center for Networked Distributed Energy and RamLab
Dr. Troxel will welcome the SURF organization to Colorado State University and provide and overview of sustainability initiatives at Colorado State University.
Taking the SURF White Paper to the Next Level:
Creation of a Sustainable Remediation Site Database
Steven Murawski, Baker & McKenzie LLP
The purpose of the presentation is to describe the proposed creation of an on-line Sustainable Remediation Site Clearinghouse that will allow users to conduct database searches of sustainability-related elements of remediation projects throughout the United States. The presentation will begin with a brief background of the SURF White Paper and EPA's developing regional and national Green/Sustainable Remediation Policies. Afterward, a discussion of the key differences between the SURF White Paper's goals and EPA's Policies will be explored. Next, the proposed on-line Sustainable Remediation Site Clearinghouse will detailed using representative example from EPA's Green Remediation website. Finally, the presentation will end with an outline of suggested next steps to complete this project.
"Our Common Future"...
Addressing the other half of the sustainability challenge
Carl Hammerdorfer, Director, Global Social & Sustainable Enterprise (GSSE) MBA, Executive Director, Center for Advancement of Sustainable Enterprise (CASE)
The Bruntdland report addressed not only environmental and climate concerns, but also linked progress in that sphere to the challenge of economic and social development. Business has tended to view sustainability almost exclusively through the energy and environment lens. More recently, thought leaders and leading business schools have begun to include the other 4 billion in their strategies for building a more sustainable model for global commerce. CSU's Global, Social & Sustainable Enterprise MBA prepares a new generation of students to change the world using enterprise solutions. Its partner organization, Center for Advancement of Sustainable Enterprise (CASE), creates a framework for success of social entrepreneurs, and acts as a bridge between CSU research and commercial actors.
The Multiple Meanings of Sustainability: Values and the Triple Bottom-Line
Michele Betsill, Colorado State University
Sustainability and the related quest to balance environmental, economic, and social goals has become a guiding principle for myriad activities in the public and private spheres from the global to the local level. Yet we find considerable variation in the types of activities that are considered "sustainable" when this principle is translated into practice. This talk will provide a framework for understanding the multiple meanings of sustainability with a particular focus on the role of values in shaping different perspectives. Ultimately, the search for a sustainable future must involve processes by which societies can confront and reconcile these competing values.
The Role of Yellow Iron in Sustainable Remediation
Scott Denson, SunPro Services
Yellow Iron has played a pivotal role in the remediation business over the last 50 years. As methods have progressed and waste minimization and energy reduction techniques refined, yellow iron continues to be a staple even as it enters a new marriage with sustainability. We will explore the vantage an environmental contractor witnesses and discuss some in the field examples where it gets put to action. This will all be conveyed while reflecting back on some of the obstacles sustainability faces along with looking forward to the inspirations of the science and the people.
Remedial Process Optimization (RPO) for Green Remediation: Air Force Plant 4, Texas
Rick Wice, Shaw Environmental and Infrastructure Group
To achieve timely and cost-effective site closures, the Air Force Center for Engineering and the Environment developed RPO guidance. The Army and Navy have similar programs. RPO helps reduce energy and materials use. RPO principles can be used to help green a remediation project, and many of us have been doing this for several years. Air Force Plant 4, a large aircraft manufacturing facility in Ft. Worth, Texas, will be presented as a case study showing how RPO is a tool for performing green remediation.
Improving the Sustainability of Source Removal
Ralph S. Baker, Ph.D., and Tim Burdett (TerraTherm, Inc., Fitchburg, Massachusetts); Steffen Griepke Nielsen (Niras A/S, Aarhus, Denmark); Maiken Faurbye, Niels Ploug and Jesper Holm (Krüger A/S, Søborg, Denmark)
A third-party Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) (Pfeilschifter, et al., 2007) was conducted at a DNAPL site in Reerslev, Denmark where Soil Vapor Extraction (SVE) and In Situ Thermal Desorption (ISTD) were compared with excavation/off-site treatment, and where several years of SVE operation were followed by rapid implementation of ISTD to protect one of the major municipal water supply well fields serving Copenhagen. The LCA performed for the site-specific conditions concluded that SVE would consume more energy, produce more waste and generate more greenhouse gases (GHG) than ISTD, while requiring an indefinite period of time (>100 yr) to remove sufficient contaminant mass to achieve site closure. Whether or not excavation/off-site disposal or treatment compared well with ISTD depended primarily on the transport distance to a suitable disposal or treatment site. The LCA selected ISTD as the most preferable alternative, as it offered the reduced neighborhood (i.e., social) impacts of an in situ remedy (no need to move families and demolish homes), combined with the least overall environmental and economic impacts. Subsequent implementation of ISTD at the site, completed in 2009 and treating 12,560 m3 of contaminated soil to attain the treatment goals actually consumed less energy, produced less GHG, took less time and cost less than the LCA had assumed, i.e., it proved to be even more sustainable than estimated in the LCA. The GHG associated with digging and hauling the soil approx. 140 km (85 mi) equates to the GHG associated with electrically heating the soil for the 5.5 months remediation period, meaning that transport distances exceeding approx. 140 km would be expected to have larger GHG impacts than ISTD.
Status and Direction of Alpha Student Chapter of SURF
Kevin McCoy, MS candidate Civil and Environmental Engineering
Dr. Tom Sale, Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Today's science and engineering students are broadly integrating sustainability themes into their education and emerging careers. Building on this, students with interests in remediation at CSU have formed the alpha student chapter of SURF. In the spring of 2010 student initiatives led to Colorado State University recognition of SURF as an official student organization. Content of this presentation will address the current plans for the student organization and solicit input from the parent organization regarding the mission of the student chapter and future collaborations with SURF.
Sustainable Remediation at the Bell Landfill Superfund Site, Pennsylvania: Remedy Selection, ROD Change, and Implementation
Dave Ellis, DuPont
The Bell Landfill site is a Superfund site located in northeastern Pennsylvania that contained mixed municipal and industrial waste. The site and ROD were reexamined with sustainability in mind. The original remedy specified a soil cap with a leachate collection system. The tank trucks that collected the leachate and transported it to a POTW for treatment caused several problems: noise and disturbance for neighbors and severe rutting of unpaved roads during wet periods. Over time, the leachate composition changed to the point where it no longer contained organic contaminants. After a sustainability analysis, a spray irrigation system was proposed in lieu of trucking the leachate for treatment. Following laboratory and field testing, the system was approved by the state and USEPA Region 3. An ESD was issued and the spray irrigation system began operation in 2009. A side benefit is that the vegetation on the cap no longer dies during the summers.
Using an Economic Model to Estimate Cross-Media Pollution: SF Bay Area Superfund Sustainable Remediation Case Study
L. Maile Smith, Northgate Environmental Management, Inc.
Regulatory agencies routinely establish risk-based cleanup goals for remediation projects. Although risk assessments provide a means to develop health-protective cleanup goals, they rarely consider cross-media impacts resulting from the remedial activities. We developed a simulation model as part of a comprehensive evaluation of the benefits, costs, and impacts of groundwater remediation programs for federal Superfund projects in the San Francisco Bay Area. Cross-media pollution effects are both direct and indirect, arising from lifecycle economic linkages that exist between remediation activity and the rest of the economy. A static multi-regional input-output model of the economy, calibrated to data on economic activity and pollution emissions, was used to estimate the indirect cross-effects of Bay Area Superfund pump-and-treat programs. This model is based on the IMPLAN® commercial computer software model with associated Social Accounting Matrix.
Got Impact? Working Towards Global Change from Inside the University
Dr. Morgan DeFoort / Co-Director CSU's Engines & Energy Conversion Laboratory
Colorado State University is emerging as a leader in the use of enterprise to improve the human condition on a global scale. CSU's Engines & Energy Conversion Laboratory has led the development of numerous clean energy technologies and several of these have now been implemented at large scale. This talk reviews progress on three of these technologies: emissions reduction for the U.S. natural gas pipeline system, clean cookstoves and two-stroke engine retrofits for the developing world, and algae-based biofuels. Large-scale dissemination models were tailored for each application and will be discussed. These technologies have achieved global impact through this entrepreneurial approach and are poised to dramatically increase the impact. This entrepreneurial approach to global impact is now being implemented more widely at CSU through campus-wide research organizations such as the Clean Energy Supercluster and through academic programs such as the Global Social and Sustainable Enterprise program in the College of Business.
Current Remediation Research at Colorado State University
Dr. Tom Sale, Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Director of the Center for Contaminant Hydrology
For more than two decades students and staff at Colorado State University have been working on advancing innovative strategies for subsurface releases of persistent anthropogenic compounds. A common theme in these efforts has been developing novel solutions that are effective and pragmatic. An overview of current research will be presented. This will include: in situ soil mixing, electrolytic reactive barriers, use of tracer in LNAPL, measuring natural attenuation rates of LNAPL, sheen formation processes in porous media, use of waste heat to accelerate natural attenuation, computation chemistry to evaluate the fate of persistent contaminants, and tools for selecting site remedies.