Standards, environmental cleanup

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are a family of compounds, manufactured in the United States from 1930-1975, which were used in a number of discard applications and extensively as an electrical insulating fluid (see Chap. 1). Environmental concerns have led to strict controls on the use of PCBs and standards for cleanup of PCB discharges. One of the purposes of this section is to present information on the chemical and physical characteristics of these compounds. Based on this, the mechanisms of their movement in the surface/subsurface environment can be explained. 

Novel separations procedures for anions have been developed at IBC with support from the National Institute of Standards and Technology through their Advanced Technology Program. This research has resulted in commercial or near commercial analytical procedures for anions such as RhClg , TCO4, F , and Au(CN)J. Removal of F is important for environmental cleanup in several industries. 

EPA. 1995a. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Standards for cleanup of land and buildings contaminated with residual radioactive materials from inactive uranium processing sites. Code of Federal Regulations. 40 CFR 192, Subpart B. 

Site remediation is the environmental cleanup of the site after the emergency has been completed. Gross contamination should be removed and properly disposed in accordance with applicable state and federal regulations. Cleanup standards are negotiated with the applicable state or federal agencies. 

Regulatory Approach to Site Remediation. Most environmental cleanup standards are derived from the provisions of CERCLA, section 121 "Cleanup Standards" or RCRA, Subtitle C entitled "Hazardous Waste Management." The implementing regulations are... 

The technical staff of the Department became concerned that the proposed CERCLA lai uage would not only impose a greater burden on the Department s environmental restoration efforts, substantially raising the costs without commensurate benefit, but also that there may be no way to accurately verify that the cleanup standard had been reached. Two key factors, background radiation (including fallout) and laboratory or instrument capability were of particular concern. A study, entitled "Preliminary Analysis of the Technical Feasibility of Achieving Various Residual Risk Standards for Cleanup of Radionuclides in Soil" [6], was canied out to determine the scope of the problem. It had two principle objectives ... 

Environmental cleanup standards for PCB are not applicable to concrete because the pathway/receptor assumptions made in the development of environmental standards do not apply as readily as they do to soil/ground water systems. PCB cleanup standards expressed in parts per million (ppm) generally assume some mobility of the PCB and dilution in the ultimate receiving water before reaching animals or humans. For interior applications in particular, dilution and mobility are not considered significant issues. Such standards are nonetheless applied when other standards cannot be agreed upon (Woodyard and Wade, 1986). 

HAZWOPER Acronym for the OSHA standard entitled Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response. Codified as 29 CFR 1910.120. Designed to protect the health and safety of individuals treating hazardous wastes, or performing environmental cleanups or emergency response actions. 

Each project has its own unique characteristic physical, environmental, cultural, and regulatory setting. No single approach (technology, process, or cleanup standard) can be universally applied. The following sections discuss the key elements that impact the economic decisions of remediation projects and result in the most efficient, cost-effective restoration. 

Cost of cleanup is usually directly proportional to the cleanup standard. In practice, the cost of remediation is highest where human or environmental risk is greatest. Established industrial areas that will remain in that use category will have higher acceptable cleanup concentrations than will residential or commercial areas. 

Operating costs for the Ultrox advanced oxidation system have varied dramatically from 0.15 to 90 per 1000 gal treated, depending on the type of contaminants, their concentration and the desired cleanup standard (D123626, p. 7). A cost estimate prepared during a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (ERA) Superfund Innovative Technology Evaluation (SITE) demonstration of Ultrox technology is included in Table 1. 

From our perspective there are two ways to address these problems (1) to establish and support less stringent cleanup standards, and/or (2) to develop and implement more cost-efficient, effective remediation technologies. The scope and magnitude of the environmental contamination problems in the U.S. are such that a combination of these two options will be required. 

Finally, another major area of focus continues to be the characterization of intrinsic bioremediation as the most cost-effective cleanup alternative. As part of this strategy further work will need to be conducted on developing risk-based cleanup standards using environmentally acceptable endpoints , including the potential applicability of biostabilization. These approaches are being developed to... 

US Environmental Protection Agency, Methods for Evaluating the Attainment of Cleanup Standards, Volume 1 Soil and Solid Media, EPA Report 230/02-89-042, [Office of Policy, Planning and Evaluation, Washington DC, 1989a]. 

Brownfields can be cleaned up under any number of environmental laws, including the Federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERLCA, more commonly called Superfund) the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and a variety of state environmental protection laws that generally parallel the Federal laws. Some sites are regulated under multiple authorities. One example of the confusion of cleanup standards can be seen in the original Superfund regulations. Under Superfund, US EPA and the states determined cleanup standards for each site based on ARAlls, or laws and regulations that were... 

One option was to require cleanup to levels that met Federal and State standards or water quality criteria. The Agency has decided that such a rigid requirement would impose the use of potentially inappropriate levels of cleanup that would not allow consideration of individual circumstances at each release. Any appropriate standard or criteria will be considered in determining the cleanup level of a particular release, along with other technological and environmental factors." (9)... 

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