AFCEE Low-Risk Site Closure Manual

 The AFCEE Low-Risk Site Closure Manual (LoRSC) Manual is a comprehensive decision support tool to help site managers determine if they have a low-risk site by combining key concepts, information, and experience into one dynamic decision support tool.  This information can then be used to assist site managers build effective exit strategies for closing low-risk sites and/or reducing long-term monitoring intensity. An exit strategy for a given site can be strengthened by using multiple lines of evidence; therefore, this guide provides weight-of-evidence decision logic to build consensus between site stakeholders.  

Developed by GSI Environmental Inc. in conjunction with the Air Force Center for Engineering and the Environment (AFCEE), the LoRSC Manual provides site stakeholders with a specific, focused, technology transfer roadmap that can be used to support regulatory decision making by outlining:

  1. how low-risk sites work,
  2. why they won’t cause a future environmental problem,
  3. why they should be closed, or at a minimum, should be monitored only on a very limited basis,

The Manual is intended to provide a methodology that can be used by site personnel to identify the type of USAF site (or any other site) and its probability for potential closure and evaluate and prioritize sites based on threat criteria grouping sites as LoRSC Type A, B, or C:

  • LoRSC Type A Sites: Strongest case for low risk closure or reduced monitoring;
  • LoRSC Type B Sites: Moderately good case for low risk closure or reduced monitoring;
  • LoRSC Type C Sites: More difficult for low risk closure or reduced monitoring.


The AFCEE LoRSC Manual can be applied to any type of groundwater contaminant including chlorinated solvents, petroleum fuels, metals, and pesticides.  Additionally, low-risk closure will apply for both residential and industrial levels as long as the conditions are met.


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DescriptionDocument TypeSize
AFCEE_Low-Risk Manual PDF 6.35Mb
AFCEE_Low-Risk Manual (Blank Forms) DOC 1.20Mb
AFCEE_Low-Risk Manual (Combined) ZIP 6.50Mb