Water waste disposal sites

LEACHATE Liquid that leaks from waste disposal sites. (In a broader sense liquid, e.g. solution, removed from a solid by a solvent, sueh as water.)... 

Important factors to be considered in the study of areas and sites for plant location include raw materials, transportation, process water, waste disposal, fuel and power, and weather. These are discussed individually. 

Trichloroethylene enters your body when you breathe air or drink water containing it. It can also enter your body if you get it on your skin. You could be exposed to contaminated water or air if you live near or work in a factory that uses trichloroethylene or if you live near a waste disposal site that contains trichloroethylene. If you breathe the chemical, about half the amount you breathe in will get into your bloodstream and organs. You will exhale the rest. If you drink trichloroethylene, most of it will be absorbed into your blood. If trichloroethylene comes in contact with your skin, some of it can enter your body, although not as easily as when you breathe or swallow it. 

In a rural area, where leachate from a hazardous waste disposal site has contaminated an aquifer currently used by only a few residential wells, it may appear more cost-effective to replace a water... 

Organophosphate ester hydraulic fluid components have also been detected in groundwater near a hazardous waste site (1.7 pg/L tributyl phosphate) (Sawhney 1989) and in surface water from a radioactive waste disposal site (triphenyl phosphate and tributyl phosphate) (Francis et al. 1980). Organophosphate... 

Revegetation is a cost-effective method to stabilize the surface of hazardous waste disposal sites, especially when preceded by capping and grading. Revegetation decreases erosion by wind and water and contributes to the development of a naturally fertile and stable surface environment. It may be part of a long-term site reclamation project, or it may be used on a temporary or seasonal basis to stabilize intermediate cover surfaces at waste disposal sites. 

Alternative final cover systems, such as the innovative evapotranspiration (ET) cover systems, are increasingly being considered for use at waste disposal sites, including municipal solid waste (MSW) and hazardous waste landfills when equivalent performance to conventional final cover systems can be demonstrated. Unlike conventional cover system designs that use materials with low hydraulic permeability (barrier layers) to minimize the downward migration of water from the cover to the waste (percolation), ET cover systems use water balance components to minimize percolation. These cover systems rely on the properties of soil to store water until it is either transpired through vegetation or evaporated from the soil surface. 

Table 1 indicates primary pollutant sources and waste modes, and Table 2 indicates the primary and secondary sources and associated pollutants. The primary sources of soil contamination include land disposal of solid waste sludge and waste-water industrial activities and leakages and spills, primarily of petroleum products. The solid waste disposal sites include dumps, landfills, sanitary landfills, and secured landfills. 

Legrand, H.E. (1980). A standardized system for evaluating waste disposal sites. National Water Well Association, Washington, DC. 

Endrin has also been shown to be absorbed after ingestion by humans (Coble et al. 1967 Curley et al. 1970 Kintz et al. 1992 Rowley et al. 1987 Runhaar et al. 1985 Waller et al. 1992 Weeks 1967) however, no studies were located on the rate or extent of absorption that occurs in orally exposed humans or animals. Exposure to endrin through ingestion of contaminated drinking water is not expected to be an important source of concern because the compound has only rarely been detected in drinking water (Schafer et al. 1969 Wnuk et al. 1987). Since endrin is tightly bound to soil particles, ingestion of endrin-contaminated soil, particularly by children, may be an important route of exposure near hazardous waste disposal sites that contain endrin. 

The injection of produced water and other oil held fluids into wells started as early as 1928. In 1976, more than 300 industrial waste disposal sites were in operation throughout the country. By 1986, approximately 60 million barrels of oil held fluids were injected through 166,000 injection wells within the conterminous United States. These volumes are anticipated to increase significantly in the future as producing helds continue to be depleted. Thus, construction requirements as listed in 40 CFR 146.22 are an essential prerequisite to the safe disposal/injechon of fluids and the prevention of contamination of USDW. 

Van Duijvenbooden, W. and Kooper, W. F., 1981, Effects on Groundwater Flow and Ground-water Quality of a Waste Disposal Site in Noordwijk, the Netherlands Science Total Environment, No. 21, pp. 85-92. 

As a result of human health concerns, production of mirex ceased in 1976, at which time industrial releases of this chemical to surface waters were also curtailed. However, releases from waste disposal sites continue to add mirex to the environment. Virtually all industrial releases of mirex were to surface waters, principally Lake Ontario via contamination of the Niagara and Oswego Rivers. About 75% of the mirex produced was used as a fire retardant additive, while 25% was used as a pesticide. As a pesticide, mirex was widely dispersed throughout the southern United States where it was used in the fire ant eradication program for over 10 years. 

Production of chlordecone ceased in 1975 as a result of human health concerns at that time industrial releases of this chemical to surface waters via a municipal sewage system were curtailed. However, releases from waste disposal sites may continue to add chlordecone to the environment. Major releases of chlordecone occurred to the air, surface waters, and soil surrounding a major manufacturing site in Hopewell, Virginia. Releases from this plant ultimately contaminated the water, sediment, and biota of the James River, a tributary to the Chesapeake Bay. 

Mirex has been detected in air, surface water, soil and sediment, aquatic organisms, and foodstuffs. Historically, mirex was released to the environment primarily during its production or formulation for use as a fire retardant and as a pesticide. There are no known natural sources of mirex and production of the compound was terminated in 1976. Currently, hazardous waste disposal sites and contaminated sediment sinks in Lake Ontario are the major sources for mirex releases to the environment (Brower and Ramkrishnadas 1982 Comba et al. 1993). 

In addition, the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) of 1986 set the groundwater standards the same as the drinking water standards for the purpose of necessary cleanup and remediation of an inactive hazardous waste disposal site. The 1986 amendments of the SDWA included additional elements to establish maximum contaminant-level goals (MCLGs) and national primary drinking water standards. The MCLGs must be set at a level at which... 

Low levels of hexachlorobutadiene can be detected in air, water, and sediment. Atmospheric levels of hexachlorobutadiene in rural and urban air samples typically range from 2 to 11 ppt, with a mean value of 2-3 ppt. Higher levels can be detected at areas near industrial and chemical waste disposal sites and production sites. Hexachlorobutadiene is infrequently detected in ambient waters, but has been detected in drinking water at levels of 2-3 ppt. Sediments contain higher levels of hexachlorobutadiene than the waters from which they were obtained. Foodstuffs generally do not contain detectable levels of hexachlorobutadiene, with the exception offish, in which concentrations of 0.1-4.7 mg/kg have been reported. 

Low levels of hexachlorobutadiene (less than 1 ppb) may be found in drinking water (EPA 1989a). Finished drinking water samples from two U.S. cities were found to contain 1.6 ppt and 2.7 ppt, respectively (Lucas 1984). Hexachlorobutadiene was also detected in groundwater at 6 of 479 waste disposal sites in the United States (Plumb 1991). 

Leachate A solution formed by water that has percolated through a solid-waste disposal site and picked up water-soluble substances. 

Because radium is present, usually at very low levels, in the surrounding environment, you are always exposed to it and to the small amounts of radiation that it releases to its surroundings. You may be exposed to higher levels of radium if you live in an area where it is released into the air from the burning of coal or other fuels, or if your drinking water is taken from a source that is high in natural radium, such as a deep well, or from a source near a radioactive waste disposal site. 

Thus, for purposes of waste classification, it appears possible to assess the risk from the intrusion and atmospheric release pathways at a generic hazardous waste disposal site. However, a generic assessment of risk from the water release pathway normally would incorporate assumptions that would be extremely conservative for many sites (e.g., the amount of water infiltration and travel times of hazardous substances to a nearby well). 

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