Message #105: November 2005

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The purpose of TechDirect is to identify new technical, policy and
guidance resources related to the assessment and remediation of
contaminated soil, sediments and ground water.

Mention of non-EPA documents or presentations does not
constitute a U.S. EPA endorsement of their contents, only an
acknowledgment that they exist and may be relevant to the
TechDirect audience.

Internet Seminars

ITRC Design, Installation and Monitoring of Alternative Final
Landfill Covers - November 3. This training focuses on
evapotranspiration (ET) covers and the decisions associated with
their successful design, construction, and long-term care. For more
information and to register, see http://www.itrcweb.org or
http://clu-in.org/studio .

ITRC Radiation Site Cleanup: CERCLA Requirements and
Guidance - November 8. The focus of this ITRC training is
EPA's guidance for remediating radioactively contaminated sites,
which can facilitate cleanups that are consistent with how chemical
contaminants are addressed, except where technical differences
posed by radiation are addressed. This course also discusses long
term stewardship (LTS) challenges related to the large radioactively
contaminated sites. This understanding of LTS issues is integral to
the cleanup process and decisions made at the radiation sites. To
register, see http://www.itrcweb.org or http://clu-in.org/studio .

ITRC Triad Approach: A New Paradigm for Environmental Project
Management - November 10. This seminar discusses the
relationship of the Triad to previous regulatory guidance, and
offers a discussion of issues that may affect stakeholders. The
ITRC guidance document, Technical and Regulatory Guidance for
the Triad Approach: A New Paradigm for Environmental Project
Management (SCM-1, 2003), serves as the basis for this training
course. To register, see http://www.itrcweb.org or
http://clu-in.org/studio .

Socio-Economic Causes and Consequences of Future
Environmental Changes - November 16. EPA's National Center
for Environmental Economics (NCEE), and Region 9 are
sponsoring a workshop on future environmental scenarios research
supported by NCER. Topics include trends in housing and how
they affect land-use and land-cover changes, economic and
demographic drivers of aquaculture, and the economics of
estimated increases in greenhouse gas emissions. Additional
research on the consequences of global change, including climate
and climate variability, land use, economic development, and
technology on air quality will also be presented. Land use
planners, air quality and water quality agency staff, transportation
specialists, conservation managers, aquaculture experts, and those
interested in energy use and management will learn about EPA's
latest research in this area. To register, see
http://clu-in.org/studio .

ITRC Constructed Treatment Wetlands - November 17. This
course, developed by the Interstate Technology and Regulatory
Council (ITRC), is based on Technical and Regulatory Guidance
for Treating Storm Water and Wastewater Using Constructed
Treatment Wetlands (WTLND-1). It describes the physical,
chemical, and biological mechanisms operating in wetlands
treatment systems, the contaminants to which they apply, the
characteristics of sites suitable to treatment in this fashion, and
relevant regulatory issues. To register, see http://www.itrcweb.org
or http://clu-in.org/studio .

Jump-Starting Ecological Restoration - Soil Health - December 1.
Any restoration effort is only as good as the soil that it is built
on. The goal of this Internet Seminar is to provide site managers
with the basics of soil science and with available tools to build a
beautiful soil in a single season. By taking this Internet Seminar,
participants will gain the tools necessary to evaluate the conditions
of the soils at their sites, identify locally available and cost-
effective residuals that would effectively improve these soils, and
gain familiarity with a number of different application options for
incorporating these amendments into site soils. The potential for
amendments to be used for in situ remediation will be clear
through the case studies. As managers are being faced with both
reduced resources and the need to consider end uses of sites, this
type of approach is an essential first step towards ecological
restoration. To register, see http://clu-in.org/studio .

Improving Contracting, Design, and Evaluation of
Groundwater Pump and Treat Systems - December 5. This
seminar discusses four recent EPA fact sheets on lessons learned
from conducting optimization reviews at over 30 pump and treat
(P&T) systems nationwide. The seminar covers the cost-effective
design of P&T systems as well as effective management,
contracting, and reporting for operating P&T systems. Illustrative
examples convey a number of concepts, including design
considerations at complex sites, describe the primary components
of a capture zone evaluation, and discuss the merits of fixed-price
or time-and-materials contracts for long-term operations and
maintenance (O&M) of P&T systems. One of the fact four sheets
is a template for an O&M report, and the internet seminar presents
the various sections, tables, and figures that are included in the
template. For more information and to register, see
http://clu-in.org/studio .

ITRC Site Investigation and Remediation for Munitions
Response Projects - December 6. State and tribal regulatory
officials are routinely required to evaluate DOD cleanup strategies
with little, if any, environmentally oriented munitions response
experience or guidance. State regulators are increasingly being
charged with oversight responsibility for munitions response
cleanup projects on other than operational ranges, such as formerly
used defense sites (FUDS) and base realignment and closure
(BRAC) sites. This seminar covers the site investigation and site
remediation process for munitions response sites on other than
operational ranges. It provides an introduction and overview of the
processes, tools, and techniques used in investigation and
remediation. These concepts are illustrated using an example
munitions response site. For more information and to register,
see http://www.itrcweb.org or http://clu-in.org/studio .

Perchlorate: Overview of Issues, Status, and Remedial Options
- December 8. Improved analytical methodology has increased the
known extent of perchlorate contamination in the U.S. A variety
of remediation technologies are currently commercially available
and being used for perchlorate remediation. This training, based on
ITRC's Perchlorate: Overview of Issues, Status, and Remedial
Options (PERC-1), explains why perchlorate is a hot topic in the
environmental community including up-to-date information on
sources, occurrences, toxicity and exposure, regulatory status and
remediation alternatives. For more information and to register, see
http://www.itrcweb.org or http://clu-in.org/studio .

Documents and Web Resources

Decision Support Tools (DSTs) Matrix. DSTs are interactive
software tools used by decision-makers to help answer questions,
solve problems, and support or refute conclusions. They can be
incorporated into a structured decision-making process for
environment site clean-up. DSTs often support multiple functions,
such as data acquisition, spatial data management, modeling, and
cost estimating. The matrix is a table that provides general
information about each DST, such as the types of files that may be
imported to, or exported from, the DST, the characteristics of
applicable sites (contaminants and media) and the functions it
performs. All DSTs that were evaluated are free to the public.
View and use at http://www.frtr.gov/decisionsupport/index.htm .

Triad Project Profiles with Cost & Time Savings Online. The
Triad Resource Center (TRC) website provides the information
hazardous waste site managers and cleanup practitioners need to
implement the Triad effectively. Federal and state partners have
documented 15 Triad projects through profiles available on TRC,
with additional profiles to be added soon. Each profile describes
the primary objective(s) of the project, site history, team members
and collaboration methods, real-time measurement technologies,
data management techniques, project timelines, as well as
discussions of the Triad elements applied. Electronic documents
such as Statements of Work, Sampling and Analysis Plans, and
Decision Logic Diagrams are supplied to many profiles to further
demonstrate the use of Triad in the project. Furthermore, cost and
time savings have been highlighted for each profile. Visitors can
access the Triad profiles at http://www.triadcentral.org/user/index.cfm
.

Use of Dynamic Work Strategies Under a Triad Approach for
Site Assessment and Cleanup - Technology Bulletin. The EPA
Brownfields and Land Revitalization Technology Support Center
(BTSC) is preparing a series of technical bulletins to provide
additional information about how to implement specific aspects of
the Triad approach. This bulletin focuses on planning and
implementation of DWSs, presenting: answers to frequently asked
questions on implementing a DWS; summaries of the application
of DWS at two redevelopment sites, including: Former Cos Cob
Power Plant, Greenwich, CT and Assunpink Creek Greenway,
Trenton, NJ; and sources of additional information for
communities and project teams desiring to implement a DWS and
the Triad approach (September 2005, 9 pages). View or download
at http://www.brownfieldstsc.org/pdfs/DWSBulletin.pdf .

US EPA Steam Enhanced Remediation Research for DNAPL
in Fractured Rock - Loring Air Force Base, Limestone, Maine
(EPA 540-R-05-010). This EPA report details a research project
on Steam Enhanced Remediation (SER) for the recovery of volatile
organic contaminants (VOCs) from fracture limestone that was
carried out at an abandoned quarry at the former Loring Air Force
Base (AFB) in Limestone, Maine. The purpose of the study was to
determine if SET would heat the target area for remediation;
enhance contaminant recovery, and reduce contaminant
concentrations in the rock and ground water. Secondary objectives
included determining if contaminants were mobilized outside of
the treatment area, documenting the ability of SteamTech's effluent
treatment systems to meet discharge requirements, determining
operating parameters for fractured rock, and documenting costs
(August 2005, 200 pages). View or download chapters at
http://www.epa.gov/ORD/NRMRL/pubs/540r05010/540r05010.pdf .

EUGRIS, the web portal for Soil and Water management in
Europe. The EUGRIS portal is a web based European information
platform, which is openly available and provides comprehensive
and overarching information resource for sustainable groundwater
and land management practice. EUGRIS provides access to
information on soil and groundwater management from throughout
the European Union, including research projects, technical
information, available training, legislation, guidance and support
tools. See http://www.eugris.info .

Mercury Species Fractionation and Quantification by
Microwave Assisted Extraction, Selective Solvent Extraction
and/or Solid Phase Extraction. The Office of Solid Waste has
developed a new technique for speciating mercury. Method 3200
contains a sequential extraction and separation procedure that may
be used in conjunction with a determinative method to differentiate
mercury species that are present in soils and sediments. It also
provides information on both total mercury and various mercury
species. View or download at
http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/hazwaste/test/pdfs/3200.pdf .

The Use and Effectiveness of Phytoremediation to Treat
Persistent Organic Pollutants. This document was prepared by
Kristi Russell during an internship with the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, sponsored by the Environmental Careers
Organization. This report is intended to provide an overview of
phytoremediation uses to treat media contaminated by persistent
organic pollutants and demonstrate the potential for use of
phytoremediation in developing and transitional economies
(August 2005, 49 pages). View or download at
http://clu-in.org/techpubs.htm .

Permeable Reactive Barriers for Inorganic and Radionuclide
Contamination. This document was prepared by Kate Bronstein,
a National Network of Environmental Management studies
grantee, under a fellowship from the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency. It is a reference for project managers,
engineers, students, and others interested in a review of case
studies of the instances where permeable reactive barriers have
been used to remediate sites contaminated with inorganics and
radionuclides. The paper mainly focuses on case studies, but a
brief overview is given on topics such as: treatment media types,
reactive processes, site characterization, configuration, and the
nature of contamination (August 2005, 63 pages). View or
download at http://clu-in.org/techpubs.htm .

In Situ Bioremediation of DNAPL Source Zones. This
document was prepared by Lisa Moretti, a National Network of
Environmental Management studies grantee, under a fellowship
from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The objective of
this report is to provide an overview of in situ bioremediation of
DNAPL source areas. This report discusses the integral steps when
implementing bioremediation, such as site characterization, design
considerations, and post-treatment monitoring. In addition, this
report also examines the use of bioremediation as a polishing
treatment for the source zone. Case studies are included as
examples of the use of bioremediation as a stand-alone and a
polishing treatment for DNAPL source areas (August 2005, 37
pages). View or download at http://clu-in.org/techpubs.htm .

Conferences and Symposia

Call for Abstracts! Design and Construction Issues at
Hazardous Waste Sites Conference, Philadelphia, April 19-20.
This EPA conference will provide a forum for discussion between
the private sector and the federal and state government regarding
design and construction issues at hazardous waste sites including
effective methods, lessons learned, and application of technologies.
EPA anticipates up to eight panel sessions across the topical areas
of groundwater, post-construction, and project management. The
deadline for submitting abstracts in November 23, 2005. For more
information, see http://www.rdra.org/construction/ .

2005 NGWA Remediation Conference: Site Closure and the
Total Cost of Cleanup, Houston, November 7-8. This third
annual Remediation Costs Conference is all about the actual costs
to close sites. This year, the NGWA added optimization and
performance modeling to the conference topics. The event will
blend modeling with remediation and focus on actual remediation
projects and the costs associated with numerous remediation
technologies. Case studies will include industrial sites, landfills,
petroleum and chlorinated solvent sites, and much more. The
conference will also feature an industry display area, workshops,
concurrent sessions, and panel discussions of competing
technologies. Full proceedings will be published on CD-ROM. For
more information and to register, see
http://www.ngwa.org/e/conf/0511075010.shtml .

2005 Partners in Environmental Technology Technical
Symposium & Workshop, Wasington, DC, November 29-
December 1. Sponsored by the DoD Strategic Environmental
Research and Development Program (SERDP) and the
Environmental Security Technology Certification Program
(ESTCP), this conference will take place November 29 - December
1, 2005. This event will provide attendees: concurrent technical
sessions covering the latest in environmental research results and
technical innovations; poster sessions featuring more than 350
technical posters; exhibit booths offering information about
funding opportunities in related research programs; a concluding
session providing a summary of SERDP and ESTCP program
development and opportunities to conduct research and
demonstrations; and networking opportunities with more than 800
environmental professionals. For more information, please visit
http://www.serdp.org .

NOTE: For TechDirect, we prefer to concentrate mainly on new
documents and the Internet live events. However, we do support
an area on CLU-IN where announcement of conferences and
courses can be regularly posted. Currently there are 167
conferences and courses featured. We invite sponsors to input
information on their events at http://clu-in.org/courses . Likewise,
readers may visit this area for news of upcoming events that might
be of interest. It allows users to search events by location, topic,
time period, etc.