Waste sites

The EPA Contract Laboratory Program (CLP) has responsibility for managing the analysis programs required under the U.S. Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). The approved analytical methods are designed to analyze water, soil, and sediment from potentially hazardous waste sites to determine the presence or absence of certain environmentally harmful organic compounds. The methods described here all require the use of GC/MS. 

Electrokinetics. Electrokinetics is a tested technology that has been used for over half a century to dewater and stabilize soils, and has recently been investigated for in situ use at hazardous waste sites (23). Primarily used for metals removal, the technology utilizes an electrical field to generate a flow and concentration gradient in porous and semiporous soils. 

Zomberg, R. and B. Wainwright, Waste Minimization Applications in Industiy and Hazardous Waste Site Remediation, Riverdale, New York, 1992/1993, p. 37. 

Groundwater is vulnerable to pollution by chemicals carried by rainwater, leaching from waste sites or from waste water carrying industrial or agricultural effluent. Treatment of drinking water may remove some, but not all, of these contaminants. Some polycarbonate or metal water pipes that are lined with epoxy resin lacquers may release bisphenol A. 

Air contaminant releases from hazardous waste sites can occur from wastes placed aboveground or belowground. The following are categories of air contaminant releases ... 

An extremely difficult task is the estimation of emissions from hazardous waste sites. Frequently, both the amounts of materials existing vithin the site and the compounds and mixtures that are represented are not known. Even if both of these pieces of information are reasonably well known, the conditions of the containers holding these chemicals are not initially known. 

The EPA Hazardous Ranking System computes a numerical score for hazardous waste. If the score exceeds a predetermined value, the waste site is placed on the National Priority List (NPL) for Superfund cleanup. Discuss the pros and cons of such a ranking system. Describe a possible situation in which an air contaminant is controlled but the control system used transfers the contaminant problem to another medium, such as water or soil. 

Table 6. Geophysical Techniques, Their Application and Limitations at Hazardous Waste Sites (Johnson, 1986)...

Technique Technology Description Utilization at Hazardous Waste Sites Limitation on Application... 

Johnson, W. and P. Johnson. "Pitfalls of Geophysics in Characterizing Underground Hazardous Waste," In Management of Uncontrolled Hazardous Waste Sites Proceedings, Hazardous Materials Control Research Institute, Washington, D C., p. 227-232, 1986. 

The use of a drain system permits the quick construction of a collection/removal system which also serves as a barrier for leachate from large, shallow sites. At the Sylvester hazardous waste site in Nashua, New Hampshire, a groundwater interception and recirculation system was installed as a method to retard further spread of the leachate plume until a remedial cleanup action could be implemented. The system was operated for 1 year until a containment wall and cap were constructed over the 20-acre site (McAneny, 1985). 

U.S. EPA. Case Studies Addendum 1-8 Remedial Response at Hazardous Waste Sites. Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1987. 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Case Studies No. 1-23 Remedial Response at Hazardous Waste Sites, EPAy540/2/84-002b, March, 1984. 

In partieular, we will refer to Occupational Safety and Health Guidance Manual for Hazardous Waste Sites Activities, and the U.S. 

In many eases, treating sites as being hazardous waste sites ean help to minimize any assoeiated health and safety risk if more seriously eontaminated areas are diseovered during site remediation, or eleanup, workers will not be overexposed based on eurrent requirements. 

A required cleanup of an uncontrolled hazardous waste site, including investigation of known or suspected contamination to do the presence of hazardous substance ... 

For example, contaminated areas of a hazardous waste site potentially pose some level of health hazards. 

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