Site Investigation and Remediation
Site Investigation
Environmental Troubleshooters Inc. has a team of environmental scientists, geologists, and environmental professionals who have extensive experience designing work plans to investigate the release of hazardous chemicals and petroleum product. Our work plans determine the sampling strategy and drilling location/depth to adequately identify and delineate the magnitude and extent of a release. Our sampling strategies are based on our previous investigation knowledge and experience and we follow EPA requirements or state-specific guidance documents.
Once a work plan is approved, we clear public and private utilities and advance soil borings, soil gas borings, sub-slab vapor points, test pits and/or utilize other investigative technologies (e.g. LIF borings, magnetometer surveys, etc.). Our standard soil sampling strategy includes collection of continuous sample cores to ensure no soil horizon is missed, and the use of dual-tube push probe sampling to provide accurate, discrete samples. ET personnel also have experience overseeing rotosonic, mud rotary, air rotary and bedrock coring drilling techniques. Borehole soil samples are typically collected at the highest photoionization detector (PID) value, highest x-ray fluorimeter (XRF) value, ground water table and/or bottom of the boring. Borehole water samples are typically collected using temporary wells to allow for sufficient ground water recharge providing adequate water volume for sample collection.
Should permanent monitoring well be necessary, ET personnel install the wells according to state code with screened intervals in the saturated zone and adequate screen length to account for water table fluctuation when investigating petroleum or most-dissolved phase contaminants in shallow, unconfined aquifers. Deeper monitoring wells designed to assess dense non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPL) are installed with submerged screens. ET follows strict boring and monitoring well decontamination procedures to ensure no cross-contamination exists during drilling and sample collection.
Hollow Stem Auger Drilling in a Tank Containment
Remediation
When a leak or spill has occurred and cleanup is necessary, we have remediation experience to select the appropriate site-specific cleanup technology. For complex projects, we thoroughly evaluate site parameters and conduct feasibility studies to develop multiple remediation options based on technical and budgetary constraints. This allows you to select the remedial option to meet your needs.
ET personnel have extensive experience with the most common remediation options which typically include excavation and/or vacuum pump truck extraction of fuel and contaminated groundwater. Excavation may be required to address recent leaks/spills, during tank removal, and/or to address surface contamination which poses a direct contact and runoff risk. Soil disposal options include composting/biopiling, thermal treatment, asphalt batch incorporation, landspreading/land treatment, stabilization, and landfilling. ET projects have included complex excavations near utility lines, building footings and within buildings.
With the more recent establishment of vapor intrusion (VI) standards for residential and industrial/commercial buildings, the requirement for vapor mitigation in these structures is becoming more common. ET is a licensed vapor mitigation contractor and ET personnel have extensive experience installing effective sub-slab vapor mitigation systems. Suction pits are drilled through the slab floor and a vacuum is applied initially with a shop vac. Vacuum field extension is measured using a micromanometer and vapor pins installed through the slab in strategic locations. Permanent vacuum lines are then installed and connected to a radon-type blower.
In some cases, remedial systems are the most effective cleanup technology. We have experience with multi-phase extraction, soil vapor extraction, air sparging, bioventing, and other remedial system technologies. ET has designed, installed and successfully operated remedial systems targeting petroleum and chlorinated solvent releases. To ensure we have selected the best approach we optimize our system design using advanced computer modeling and pilot testing. ET personnel have installed/operated remedial systems for emergency response work and standard remedial work at gas stations, industrial and commercial sites, and are familiar with permitting, air emission and water discharge requirements.
Environmental Troubleshooters Inc. also has extensive remedial experience with bioremediation via compound injection, which may include oxygen-release compounds, emulsified vegetable oils, bacteria inocculum, and various other solutions. In some cases, bioremediation may involve application of bacteria directly to spill areas. ET personnel have also conducted projects where multiple injection points over large industrial and military projects are required, with use of temporary tanks, dosing pumps and injection via push probe and other technologies.
