Contaminated Site Clean-Up Information (CLU-IN): Upcoming Internet Seminars

SRP Progress in Research Summer 2026 Webinar Series: Session I, June 1, 2026

Wed, 8 Apr 2026 15:46:44 GMT

This Progress in Research webinar series, hosted by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Superfund Research Program (SRP), showcases research from 6 schools funded by SRP in 2025. These awards were made as part of the P42 grant solicitation RFA-ES-20-014. In the two-part series, awardees will highlight their research projects, accomplishments, and next steps. The newly funded centers, including Oregon State University, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, and University of Southern California, are bringing fresh ideas and approaches to tackle complex problems related to hazardous substances.

The Oregon State University (OSU) SRP Center is driven to identify polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the environment, to characterize their toxicity, and to specify the environmental concentrations at which they pose no threat to human health. The OSU SRP Center studies the composition of complex PAH mixtures, the changes in composition after remediation and natural attenuation, and the implications of PAH mixtures for human health.

The University of North Carolina (UNC)-Chapel Hill SRP Center addresses serious public health challenges faced by communities in North Carolina and across the nation related to inorganic arsenic (iAs). The UNC-Chapel Hill SRP Center is working to identify these factors that would facilitate the development of novel solutions/interventions to reduce the prevalence of iAs-associated diabetes, as well as other diseases associated with iAs exposure.

The University of Southern California (USC) SRP Center works to develop problem-based, solution-oriented scientific knowledge and innovative technologies to address the issue of poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) water contamination in Superfund and other sites. The USC SRP Center has the goal of specifically addressing PFAS in relation to their effects on liver disease and addressing urgent concerns regarding water quality and human health in populations affected by PFAS exposures and Superfund sites.

To learn about and register for the other session in this webinar series, please see the SRP website.

SRP Progress in Research Summer 2026 Webinar Series: Session II, July 16, 2026

Wed, 8 Apr 2026 15:47:28 GMT

This Progress in Research webinar series, hosted by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Superfund Research Program (SRP), showcases research from 6 schools funded by SRP in 2025. These awards were made as part of the P42 grant solicitation RFA-ES-20-014. In the two-part series, awardees will highlight their research projects, accomplishments, and next steps. The newly funded centers, including Baylor College of Medicine, University of Arizona, and University of Iowa, are bringing fresh ideas and approaches to tackle complex problems related to hazardous substances.

The Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) SRP Center investigates whether the maternal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) emanating from superfund sites, as well as other environmental chemicals, increases the risk of preterm births (PTBs) and augments major neonatal morbidities such as bronchopulmonary dysplasia. The BCM SRP Center wants to determine the mechanisms by which PAHs contribute to PTBs and understand the factors that could be targets for interventions to prevent and reduce the health burden associated with PAHs present in Superfund sites.

The University of Arizona SRP Center works to address the unique human health risks encountered in the U.S. Southwest, a region with a rich history of metal mining and generation of mine wastes. Their overall goal is to construct a mechanistic model of how chronic exposure to mining-impacted dust that is co-contaminated with metal(loid)s and fungal spores contributes to the development of nonmalignant lung diseases. They aim to implement this model to predict exposures and associated health outcomes, to inform public health prevention in communities neighboring mine waste sites, and design remediation-based interventions to exposure.

The University of Iowa SRP Center focuses its research on polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The center studies PCBs in the air, particularly in schools and those emitted from contaminated soils and water of Superfund sites. Researchers examine the health impacts of inhaled PCBs, particularly on adolescents, with a focus on neurodevelopmental and metabolic effects. The University of Iowa SRP Center�s long-term goal is to develop recommendations to prevent and/or limit human exposure to airborne PCBs and to improve the health and well-being of the population.

To learn about and register for the other session in this webinar series, please see the SRP website.

FRTR Spring 2026 General Meeting: Characterizing Groundwater/Surface Water Interfaces for Effective Site Remediation Decisions and Contaminant Cleanup (Session 1), May 20, 2026

Thu, 2 Apr 2026 13:51:38 GMT

The FRTR 2026 Spring General Meeting, conducted as two web-based virtual sessions, provides an opportunity to share best technical practices and results of recent technical advances in understanding and characterizing contaminant fate and migration across the GSI. The first virtual session explores current scientific understanding of key hydrological and biogeochemical processes affecting contaminant distribution and transport across a GSI. This session also explores available methods and tools for characterizing contaminant migration across a GSI. The second virtual session provides an overview of recent advances in development of innovative technologies for GSI characterization. The session ends with a discussion of needs for further technological development.

FRTR Spring 2026 General Meeting: Characterizing Groundwater/Surface Water Interfaces for Effective Site Remediation Decisions and Contaminant Cleanup (Session 2), May 21, 2026

Thu, 2 Apr 2026 13:51:38 GMT

ITRC: Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CEC) Identification Framework, May 7, 2026

Wed, 18 Feb 2026 17:26:44 GMT

In 2023, the ITRC Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CEC) Framework was published to help environmental regulatory agencies and other stakeholders identify, evaluate, and manage CEC's while acknowledging uncertainties in their environmental fate and transport, receptor exposure, and/or toxicity. Such an approach can be conducive to improved allocation of regulatory response resources and provide a foundation for communicating potential risk to stakeholders.

The ITRC framework is comprised of a white paper and four associated fact sheets. In the white paper, CEC are defined as: "substances and microorganisms including physical, chemical, biological, or radiological materials known or anticipated in the environment, that may pose newly identified risks to human health or the environment." The framework is meant to help environmental regulatory agencies and other stakeholders by providing examples of CEC monitoring programs and guiding the user through the process of identifying CEC key characteristics, how to communicate real and perceived risk from CEC to the public, and how laboratory analytical methods can be used in the identification process.

The ITRC CEC training presents this entirely new framework for identification, prioritization, and communication of CEC. This course includes the following topics:

An overview of the framework, how and why it was developed, the factors that influence the creation of CEC management units at the state level, and a listing of existing CEC monitoring programs.
A discussion of key variables that may be used as criteria to identify and prioritize CEC for response actions. This portion of the course includes a case study that illustrates how the identification and prioritization process works with an "unknown" chemical CEC.
Practices and methods for stakeholder messaging and how to share incomplete information on CEC that could impact human health and the environment. This portion of the short course builds upon the ITRC Risk Communication Toolkit by providing additional detail addresses communications plans, message maps, and audience identification.
A paradigm for how laboratory methods can be used to identify CEC ranging from:
- "Is compound X in the sample and at what concentration?" (i.e., known knowns) to
- "Which compounds from the list are in this sample?" (i.e., known unknowns) to
- "What is in the sample?" (i.e., unknown unknowns).

CEC are typically compounds or substances whose occurrence or effect is unknown but may or may not be understood through similar compounds or substances. This module includes a discussion of the use of targeted and untargeted analysis to identify a CEC.

Participants will learn the elements of the CEC framework and gain an understanding of the framework application from case studies. Participants are encouraged to review the ITRC CEC Framework prior to the class.

ITRC: Introduction to Hydrocarbons, May 19, 2026

Thu, 5 Feb 2026 18:59:20 GMT

Petroleum is a complex mixture of many compounds. Regulatory and technical guidance documents commonly focus on the hydrocarbon components of that mixture, or perceived risks that they present. However, focusing on a specific area of concern often causes practitioners to overlook other aspects of a release. For example, concerns related to exposure to total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) risks may be overlooked while pursuing concerns related to light non-aqueous phase liquid (LNAPL) recovery or petroleum vapor intrusion (PVI).

This class is designed to provide a basic overview of hydrocarbon behavior in the subsurface and how to scientifically assess concerns arising from the release of petroleum products into the environment. It will highlight key issues that help identify and manage TPH, LNAPL, and PVI risks together. Key concepts will include:

Fundamentals of petroleum hydrocarbons

Petroleum chemistry
How TPH, LNAPL, and PVI are related

Building an integrated conceptual site model (CSM)

What is a CSM…what is its purpose?
When is a CSM complete?

Identifying and managing the risks from petroleum hydrocarbons

Defining LNAPL risks based on acute, saturation, composition, or aesthetic concerns
Emphasize the importance of biodegradation in risk management decision making
How to select remedial goals and remedies that align with your goals

This course is based upon three separate Guidance Documents developed by ITRC that address the course content in detail:

Light Non-Aqueous Phase Liquid (LNAPL), LNAPL Site Management: LCSM Evolution, Decision Process, and Remedial Technologies (LNAPL-3)
Petroleum Vapor Intrusion (PVI), Fundamentals of Screening, Investigation, and Management (PVI-1)
Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon (TPH), TPH Risk Evaluation at Petroleum-Contaminated Sites (TPHRisk-1)

ITRC: PFAS Chemistry Explained, June 9, 2026

Thu, 5 Feb 2026 19:09:53 GMT

The Interstate Technology & Regulatory Council (ITRC) is presenting a training on the basics of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) chemistry. This training supplements the ITRC PFAS Introductory training and ITRC Beyond the Basics Training sessions. You can find ITRC PFAS training resources online at https://pfas-1.itrcweb.org/pfas-training/.

PFAS are an emerging group of contaminants that present unique challenges in many areas including: widespread use and presence in the environment, sampling and analysis, fate and transport, and remedial approaches. This training session will provide PFAS practitioners with an understanding of the unique aspects of PFAS chemistry that guide fate and transport, treatment, regulations, and decision-making on PFAS sites.
Key focus areas of the training include the following:

Why are PFAS different from other organic chemicals?
How are PFAS defined?
How are PFAS manufactured and why does that matter?
What are the differences between perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances?
What are the naming conventions used for the different types of PFAS?
How are short-chain and long-chain perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) defined?
What are precursors and why are they important?
What are some of the unique chemical properties of PFAS and why do they matter?

Resources and further details included in this training are in the ITRC Guidance Document (PFAS-1).