Innovative Remedial Approaches to Accelerated Site …e2s2.ndia.org/schedule/Documents/2012 Abstracts/Breakout Sessions... · Innovative Remedial Approaches to Accelerated Site Closure

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

27 © 2011 ARCADIS 29 May 2012

Sierra Army Depot, California

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]