innovative remedial approaches to accelerated site …e2s2.ndia.org/schedule/documents/2012...

Innovative Remedial

Approaches to

Accelerated Site Closure Karen Hohe Suchomel, PG

Rula A. Deeb, PhD, BCEEM

Scott T. Potter, PhD, PE

Suthan S. Suthersan, PhD, PE

ARCADIS/Malcolm Pirnie

May 24, 2012

Environment, Energy Security & Sustainability Symposium & Exhibition

Performance

Based

Remediation: A Platform for

Innovation and

Accelerated Site

Closure

• Reese Air Force Base, TX

– Innovation: Directed Groundwater

Recirculation (DGR)

• Fort Gordon, GA

– Innovation: Green Remediation

• Lake City Army Ammunition Plant, MO

– Innovation: Regulatory plan for schedule

acceleration

• Sierra Army Depot, CA

– Innovation: cost-effective management

of MMRP impacts

3 © 2011 ARCADIS 29 May 2012

Former Reese Air Force Base, Texas

Project Overview

Innovation Driver….TECHNICAL

• Reese AFB operated between 1941 and 1997 (BRAC closure): aircraft maintenance, vehicle maintenance, aircraft and equipment fueling, fire training, and solid waste disposal

• Performance objective: Fence to fence closure of all known and unknown environmental sites

• Contract administered by the USACE, Tulsa District

• Period of performance: 2004 – 2014

• Contract value: ~$43.5M

Technical Challenges

• 3-mile TCE plume in a sole source aquifer for surrounding community

– Restoration to MCLs – Groundwater drives the local

economy (potable use, farming, commercial, light industrial)

– Dozens of private wells and irrigation wells

– Extensive well network for site remediation (671 monitoring wells, 50 extraction wells, 60 injection wells)

• Aquifer heterogeneities

• Result: “Final” remedy operating for 5 years and still no OPS

The Tower Area TCE Plume

Landfill

Primary

Sources

2004


Technical

Approach

• Revise the Conceptual Site Model

– Detected high permeability layers that

control migration direction

• Using the new CSM as a foundation

for remedy design

– Modify current system to demonstrate

OPS

• Pump and treat required to avoid ROD

modification

– Optimize current system to accelerate

mass removal

– Stop plume growth

Use of Optimization Tools

Innovative software

(MODALL), an add-on

to MODFLOW, was

used to optimize

remedy

900 gpm

300 gpm

Setting the stage to

optimizing remedy

approved in the ROD

300 gpm

Plume Management Approach

Landfill

Primary Sources

5

4

3

1

2

2004

Directed Groundwater Recirculation

Plume Evolution

2004 2006

2008 2011


Reese

Summary

• Overall Project – Site Closure (SC) for 7 soil sites within 4

years of start

– Remediation (to MCLs) of groundwater plumes at Southwest Landfill and POL Area

• Tower Plume – OPS designation

– TCE below 5 ppb, entering 3 year monitoring period for closure

– Plume shrinkage from 800 acres (2004) to 12 acres (July 2011) at an average rate of 2-3 acres/week

– Savings: ~$25M

– Schedule: Acceleration by 12 years

13 © 2011 ARCADIS 29 May 2012

Fort Gordon, Georgia

Project Overview

Innovation Driver….TECHNICAL

• Period of performance: 9/2001– 10/2015, with contract value of $19.5M

• Performance objectives: Close 26 SWMUs

– Landfills, former maintenance shops, waste

storage and disposal areas, drainage

structures, groundwater plumes

– Contaminants: Hydrocarbons, pesticides,

mercury, chlorinated solvents

• Key technical challenge: SWMU 9

– TCE plume with concentrations >1,000 ppb

– Plume is discharging to the adjacent stream

– Stream data demonstrate that surface water

concentrations are ND

– No identified receptors; remote location

– Groundwater concentrations are attenuating

Technical Challenges

Remedy Objectives

• Address the Georgia Environmental Protection Division guidelines to have an active remedy

• Result in minimal site impacts to protect an endangered species (Red Cockaded Woodpecker)

• Needs to be low maintenance because of the remoteness of the site and there is no access to power or utilities

• Meet GA stream water quality standards (32 ppb)


The Result:

Artesian

Treatment

Vessels

(ATVs)

Sustainability by design

• ARCADIS balanced the overall treatment objectives and the ecosystem considerations to develop a sustainable, cost-effective remediation strategy with the collaboration with all stakeholders involved –The ATV

– Remedy takes advantage of ambient artesian conditions that cause impacted groundwater to flow through the ATVs, removing all VOCs

5 ATVs for Plume Capture

TREATMENT

WELL


ATV

Operation

Operating ATVs – Summer 2011


Fort Gordon

Summary

• Developed and implemented an innovative “green” remedy that uses natural artesian conditions, does not require an external energy source and needs very little maintenance

– Operating continuously at 8.5 gpm (100% uptime)

– GAC life-cycle is 5 to 7 years

– Removes approximately 5.1 lbs of TCE/year

– Will reduce life cycle CO2 emissions by an 60 tons (analysis using ARCADIS BalancE3® Tool to compare alternatives)

• Improved relationship between the Army and GAEPD

21 © 2011 ARCADIS 29 May 2012

Lake City Army Ammunition Plant, MO

Project Overview

Innovation Driver….SCHEDULE

• Active ongoing mission-critical CERCLA site with 4 OUs and 33 AOCs

• Nature and extent of contamination

– Abandoned disposal pits, sumps, firing

ranges, old lagoons and dumps, closed

RCRA lagoons, burning grounds

– Large chlorinated solvent plumes with

NAPLs and mixed liquid wastes

– Impacts to a prolific drinking water

aquifer

• Contract objective: RIP/RC/NFA by 2007

• Period of performance: 2003 – 2012; contract value: ~$52.5M


Performance

Based

Contract

Drives

Schedule

• Multiple teams mobilized from across the country

• Numerous meetings with regulators

– Obtain buy in for combined reports

– Present concept for site-wide groundwater approach

– Present findings before they were included in a draft report

– Address questions/concerns before they had a chance to slow progress

• Community Meetings – Introduce technical concepts

Technical Approach

Innovative approaches to rapidly treat two NAPL source areas

• NECOU: Zero-valent iron (ZVI)/clay soil mixing treatment, with enhanced reductive dechlorination and MNA

– Reduced mass flux from

the source by decreasing

effective hydraulic conductivity

– Passive technology, limiting

life-cycle costs and net

environmental impact

– Destroys chlorinated ethenes, providing permanent treatment

• Area 18: In-situ bioremediation in DNAPL source zone


Green

Remediation

• Seven mobile solar-powered systems to recover NAPL

• Phytoremediation used to manage hydraulics related to underperforming PRB

• Reuse of extracted groundwater for elements of final remedy

• Minimizing waste generation (e.g., on-site soil treatment, passive groundwater sampling devices)


Lake City

AAP

Summary

• Met aggressive cost and schedule goals (RIP/RC/NFA within 4 years) under challenging regulatory constraints

– NFA designations at 25 AOCs

• Implemented comprehensive groundwater strategy

• Five-year review (2011) determined remedy is protective of human health and environment

• Estimated savings: $20M

• Winner: 2011 AAEE (American Association of Environmental Engineers) Excellence in Environmental Engineering Award, Design Category

Project Overview

Innovation Driver….COST and REGULATORY

• Performance objective: Achieve RC for 8 MMRP Sites

– Area with numerous white phosphorus

(WP) rounds

– Possible UXO in debris piles

– Metals exceedances in shallow soil

samples

– Elevated arsenic levels in site

groundwater wells

• Period of performance: January 2010 through December 2012

• Costs for anticipated remediation :

– $12M – characterization through RC

– >$100M – estimates for MEC removal

remedies

Sierra Army Depot: 8 MMRP Sites BLM-

Administered

Public Land

UBG


Regulatory

Interaction

• Relationship developed over 7 years of executing remediation at IRP sites

• Numerous meetings and site visit with regulators. Agreements included:

– Appropriateness of LUCs – remove sites from active Army and public use

– Scope to ensure protectiveness

– Accelerated schedule

• Agreements allowed execution of RA work during RI field work to accelerate schedule and minimize mobilization costs

Technical Approach

• Complete RI to address regulatory concerns about UXO/MEC and MC

– 100% surface sweeps for MEC

characterization

– Focused media sampling • Soil sampling to assess exposure risk

and risk of leaching to groundwater • Subsurface soil sampling

adjacent/beneath buried trenches • Installed 2 new monitoring wells • GW evaluation

• Complete RA field work during RI to meet time constraint

– BIP MEC encountered

– Fence repair/installation and warning

sign installation


Sierra Army

Depot

Summary

• Regulatory agency concurred with NFA recommendation for one site and had only one comment on the 7 Sites Draft RI/FS Report

• In August 2011, regulatory agency concurred with the selected LUCs remedy for the 7 other sites

• On track to achieve RC in 3Q2012 (within two years of contract award) with completion of a 7 Sites ROD

• Total contract value: $6.9M – order of magnitude savings


Overall

Conclusion:

Necessity

Drives

Innovation

• Performance-based remediation is a

platform for developing innovative

approaches to accelerate closure

and meet contract objectives

– Contractor accountability

• Lessons-learned process is therefore

critical

– at ARCADIS, captured by our Technical

Knowledge and Innovation (TKI) group.

• Performance-based contracting

maintains the focus on closing sites

and minimizing life-cycle costs

34

Imagine the result

QUESTIONS???

Karen Hohe Suchomel Associate Vice President, Guaranteed Outcomes Contact Info: [email protected]

innovative remedial approaches to accelerated site …e2s2.ndia.org/schedule/documents/2012...

Documents