Managing RiskFeedback

Contaminated areas identified through site assessments may require remediation prior to revitalization. The fact that a site requires some environmental cleanup or corrective action in order to render it suitable for its proposed end use does not represent the barrier that it had in the past. Even sites once thought unmarketable due to requirements for long-term cleanup are now strong candidates for successful revitalization as a result of being incorporated into an innovative revitalization plan. Stakeholders now consider environmental cleanup costs to be a potential line item to be addressed in the project budget.

Prospective revitalization sites often have existing corrective actions associated with previous environmental activities. As such, revitalization teams should consider costs associated with operation and maintenance activities required for existing systems. These costs may include potential system optimization or replacement costs, permitting and monitoring costs, and reporting costs that may be associated with activities at the site.

Revitalization of environmentally contaminated properties requires the development of detailed cost estimates that include the entire range of activities that will be necessary. Successful teams will consider the following factors:

Financial issues associated with environmental cleanup activities and the mechanisms available for funding them are presented in Public Financing section of Sources of Money.

An additional resource, the Environmental Knowledge and Assessment Tool (EKAT) is a Web-based tool used to identify, research, and evaluate environment and safety-related issues for products and systems. Used by both environmental and non-environmental professionals, EKAT was designed for Department of Defense environmental professionals, material acquisition specialists. Civilians and military alike can use EKAT to:

EKAT is an easy to use, intuitive software package that offers assistance to people with little or no environmental background as well as environmental professionals.

The Remediation/Cleanup exhibit presents additional resources:

Exhibit: Remediation/Cleanup

Excavation and disposal, colloquially known as “dig and haul,” removes contaminated material (soil, solid wastes) from its current location and transports it to a permitted off-site treatment and/or disposal facility. The soil is excavated using construction equipment, like backhoes or bulldozers. Excavation is the initial component in all ex situ treatments. Excavation and off-site disposal is a well proven and readily implementable technology. However, additional factors that may limit the applicability and effectiveness of the “dig and haul approach' include:

The rate of excavation depends on a number of factors, including the number of loaders and trucks operating. For example, the excavation of 18,200 metric tons (20,000 tons) of contaminated soil would typically require about 2 months. Disposal of contaminated media is dependent upon the availability of adequate containers to transport the hazardous waste to a permitted facility. In addition, some pretreatment of the contaminated media is usually required to comply with land disposal restrictions. At some sites, the area to be excavated is not predetermined: as soil is removed the area surrounding it is sampled until all soil around the excavated site tests cleaner than the remedial objectives. The total time it takes to excavate soil depends on several factors:

The type of contaminant and its concentration will impact off-site disposal requirements. Soil characterization as dictated by land disposal restriction (LDRs) are required. Most hazardous wastes must be treated to meet either RCRA or non-RCRA treatment standards prior to land disposal. Determining the feasibility of off-site disposal requires knowledge of land disposal restrictions an other regulations. The disposal of hazardous wastes is governed by RCRA (40 CFR Parts 261 – 265), and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) regulates the transport of hazardous materials (49 CFR Parts 172 – 179, 49 CFR Part 1387, and DOT-E 8876).

The Contamination Removal exhibit presents additional resources:

Exhibit: Contamination Removal

Revitalization stakeholders open to innovative ideas and technologies to solve environmental issues often focus on finding ways to reach assessment and cleanup requirements more efficiently. Environmental research completed in support of Superfund indicated a clear shift toward faster, less expensive, more effective approaches to limiting costs associated with Superfund corrective action. The results of the years of research completed in support of these efforts are applicable to the expedited project schedules and stringent financial requirements associated with the revitalization of potentially contaminated sites. Faster, less expensive, and more effective cleanup technologies are also useful in the redevelopment environment where economic considerations drive successful revitalization.

There is a variety of excellent resources available regarding innovative processes and technologies that may be applicable in the expedited assessment and cleanup of potentially contaminated sites destined for reuse. The EPA Innovative Technology Resources Exhibit presents EPA resources as a starting point in stakeholder research.