REMEDIATION & BROWNFIELDS

Cleaning Up Contaminated Sites

Remediation technologies are essential to environmental protection, but they can also be problematic. In some cases, cleaning up a contaminated site results in transferring the contamination elsewhere, rather than rendering the contaminated material safe to be recycled back into the environment or the marketplace.

Case-In-Point - Sept. 29, 1998 AP story Popular Trees May Offer Cheaper Pollution Solution..."Laboratory-designed hybrids of the fast-growing poplar tree have been found to act like 100-foot straws that suck contamination from soil and groundwater...In a process know as phytoremediation, the tree either safely stores the chemicals in its tissues or metabolizes them into apparently less volatile compounds. Then the tree releases these byproduct through its leaves as vapor into the atmosphere...Still, unknown, however, is whether the chemical byproducts generated by the poplars really are less harmful, or if diluting them in the atmosphere only creates another hazard." "We may soon be using trees to heal the hurt inflicted on the Easrth," said David E. Salt, an environmental chemist at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff. "But would we simply be exchanging soil pollution for air pollution?""

BROWNFIELDS

What are "brownfields"? Brownfields are abandoned, idled, or underused industrial and commercial facilities where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination. Brownfields can be located in urban, suburban, and rural areas. (Source-EPA)

Brownfields initiatives can also be very controversial. There is widespread concern among environmentalists that economic priorities have overwhelmed environmental and public health concerns. Environmentalists claim that too often remediation technology and standards do not make the officially 'remediated' properties safe for use. SEE - Apr 13, 1999: Rules let contaminants be covered, not cleaned, Philadelphia Inquirer

RELATED ZWA LINKS:

• 'BUYER BEWARE' of Old Landfills and Contaminated Property
• Open (illegal) Dumping
• Illegal Dumping at Epidemic Levels
• WASTES & TOXICS
• Water Treatment
• Perchlorate

BOOKS:

• Search Amazon for "environmental remediation," "bioremediation," "brownfields" "phytoremediation", etc.

U.S. GOVERNMENT:

• Federal Remediation Roundtable
• The Groundwater Remediation Technologies Analysis Center (GWRTAC) compiles, analyzes, and disseminates information on innovative groundwater remediation technologies.
• Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory conducts research to improve the scientific basis of risk assessment.
• Environmental Protection Agency
  • Brownfields Homepage
  • Waste Cleanup
  • Corrective Action for Hazardous Waste Professionals
  • Contaminated Sediments Newsletter
• Oak Ridge National Laboratory: The Microbial Biogeochemistry Group in the Environmental Sciences Division at Oak Ridge focuses on basic microbial ecology and bioremediation in the subsurface. The group is concerned with the basic science underlying bioremediation efforts and other uses of biotechnology.
• The National Academy of Sciences - National Academy of Engineering
  • Intrinsic Remediation of Contaminants in Subsurface Environments
  • Environmental Remediation at Naval Facilities
  • Assessing Technology Needs for High-Level Waste Tank Remediation
  • Analysis of Alternative Technologies for Subsurface Remediation of Metal and DNAPL Contamination at U.S. Department of Energy Weapons Complex Sites
• Office of Fossil Energy, Dept. of Energy / Search for "remediation"

BUSINESS & ORGANIZATIONS:

• The Brownfields Report
• Bioremediation Discussion Group (see e-mail below)
• Bio-Remediation Products Claims: Oil eating microbes digest petroleum products. When the microbes are finished, they produce carbon dioxide and water. Microbes immediately eliminate the flammability of the hydrocarbon.
• U.S. Microbics - Bioremediation
• Ecological Engineering
• Advanced BioTech Inc, Biotechnology company, specializing in; Wastewater Treatment, Bioremediation, Soil & Crop Enhancement, Soil Rejuvenation, Microbial Reproduction Enhancement Formulations, Odor Neutralization, Septic Tank Treatment, Dairy and Hog Waste Treatment.
• Wolverton Environmental
• Photoremediation - Missouri Botanical Garden - GREAT LINKS!

Note: ZWA does not endorse products or services.