Lead, soil contamination, Mexico

At Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico, an in situ application of MAECTITE was used to treat 2000 yd of soil contaminated with lead and cadmium. Following MAECTITE treatment, leachable lead and cadmium levels in soils were less than residential human health standards. In addition, contaminant levels were low enough that the treated waste could be categorized as nonhazardous by Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) standards. Total costs for the project were 125,000, which was almost 40% less than alternative stabilization techniques considered at the site (D21483F, p. 3). 

Carrizales L, Razo I, Tellez-Hernandez Jl, Torres-Nerio R, Torres A, Batres LE, Cubillas AC, Diaz-Barriga F (2006) Exposure to arsenic and lead of children living near a copper-smelter in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Importance of soil contamination for exposure of children. Environ Res, 101(1) 1-10. 

The documented occurrence of pesticides in surface water is indicative that mnoff is an important pathway for transport of pesticide away from the site of appHcation. An estimated 160 t of atra2ine, 71 t of sima2ine, 56 t of metolachlor, and 18 t of alachlor enter the Gulf of Mexico from the Mississippi River annually as the result of mnoff (47). Field appHcation of pesticides inevitably leads to pesticide contamination of surface mnoff water unless mnoff does not occur while pesticide residues remain on the surface of the soil. The amount of pesticides transported in a field in mnoff varies from site to site. It is controUed by the timing of mnoff events, pesticide formulation, physical—chemical properties of the pesticide, and properties of the soil surface (48). Under worst-case conditions, 10% or more of the appHed pesticide can leave the edge of the field where it was appHed. 

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