TAMING A LARGE SOLVENT PLUME: PROGRESS AT THE SAVANNAH RIVER SITE IN REMEDIATING GROUNDWATER

摘要

From characterizing the A/M-Area at the Savannah River Site in 1983 to having cleanedrn3,200,000,000 gallons of groundwater in that area today, this paper will share lessons learnedrnfor today’s environmental professional. Its focus will be how to manage a large solventcontaminatedrnplume. A/M-Area’s plume, contaminated primarily by volatile organicrncompounds (VOCs), is such an entity.rnSavannah River Site started remediating the A/M-Area plume using traditional air strippingrntechnology, but has since added powerful, efficient soil-vapor extraction units. Tackling VOCsrnand the significantly more persistent version of such solvents, Dense Non-Aqueous PhasernLiquids (DNAPLs), the site’s Environmental Restoration and Technology Center engineers andrnscientists have teamed up to continually improve the performance of existing remediationrnequipment, while aggressively demonstrating and deploying new technologies at A/M-Area.rnAir-lift recirculation wells, in situ chemical oxidation, and the patented BaroBallTM are just arnfew of the cutting-edge technologies demonstrated or deployed at A/M. This paper will notrnonly share ideas about the effectiveness of these technologies, but also cost information, whichrnis important to environmental project managers.rnIn addition, this paper will explain Savannah River Site’s holistic approach to remediation asrndemonstrated through A/M-Area’s cleanup, including management’s approach to working withrnregulators. Using video, animation, charts, and valuable handouts, this paper and presentationrnwill guide the audience through the evolution of remediating the A/M-Area plume. Anyonernwho must address remediating a large, solvent-contaminated plume will value the informationrnlearned from SRS’s 15 years of progress with this plume. Taming it is a challenging andrndynamic process with new lessons learned each year.