- New EPA report addressing options for recovering and beneficially using landfill gas as a renewable energy resource
- Updated NREL best practices now available for photovoltaic system operation and maintenance
- Latest NIH Superfund research findings on native fungal groups with potential for stimulating PAH degradation in soil
- Using Pollinator Partnership ecoregional planting guides to integrate pollinator communities during site restoration
- Recent SERDP feasibility study on environmentally sustainable approaches to remove and destroy PFAS in soil and groundwater
- Integrating renewable energy or energy-efficient approaches into EPA FY 2021 brownfields assessment and cleanup grant proposals
- News archives...
- November 17 ITRC webinar on geospatial analysis for optimizing remediation projects
- December 1 ITRC webinar on optimizing injection strategies and other in situ remedies
- More on the calendar...
- View the Perspectives on the Implementation of Greener Cleanups webinar presentations
Remediation activities at the former Grove Landfill site in Austin, Texas, were tightly integrated with preparation to reuse the site as an environmental education center. Contamination of the site had resulted from more than 15 years of illegal dumping of debris. BMPs included using 100% waste-derived diesel to operate mobile machinery; harvesting and storing rainwater for onsite use; salvaging and locally recycling materials such as discarded tires and scrap metal; using reclaimed bricks and scrap concrete to build onsite infrastructure; and creating habitat for naturally-occurring life forms capable of biodegrading residual toxins in an onsite water body.
A subgrade biogeochemical reactor at Travis Air Force Base in California contains waste cooking oil serving as a carbon-rich food source for contaminant-degrading microorganisms.
Operation of wind turbines at the Continental Steel Corp. site in Kokomo, Indiana, offsets up to 60% of the grid electricity used to extract contaminated groundwater from 16 wells.
Use of a continuous one-pass trencher for remedy construction at the Altus Air Force Base in Altus, Oklahoma, reduced fuel consumption while minimizing disturbance to ground surfaces and vegetation.
Integration of a bioreactor to degrade contaminants in groundwater at the Re-Solve Inc. site in North Dartmouth, Massachusetts, resulted in an 86 percent reduction in processed chemical usage.
A groundwater treatment building for the Lawrence Aviation Industries site in Port Jefferson Station, New York, was built to meet selected LEED criteria for green building.
Onsite solar energy is used to power skimming pumps that recover hydrocarbons from groundwater at the former St. Croix Alumina Plant in Kingshill, U.S. Virgin Islands.
About 500,000 tons of byproduct from a local industrial plant was used to stabilize 85 acres of mine-impacted lands at the De Sale Restoration Area in Butler County, Pennsylvania.
Restoration of the Pemaco Superfund site in Mayfield, California, included establishing greenspace that promotes rainwater infiltration and minimizes stormwater runoff.
Best Management Practice (BMP)
Fact Sheets
- An Overview (PDF) (2 pp, 231K)
- Excavation and Surface Restoration (PDF) (5 pp, 286K) *Update*
- Site Investigation and Environmental Monitoring (PDF) (4 pp, 179K)
- Pump and Treat Technologies (PDF) (8 pp, 225K)
- Bioremediation (PDF) (4 pp, 176K)
- Soil Vapor Extraction & Air Sparging (PDF) (4 pp, 131K)
- Clean Fuel & Emission Technologies for Site Cleanup (PDF) (10 pp, 354K)
- Integrating Renewable Energy into Site Cleanup (PDF) (8 pp, 335K)
- Sites with Leaking Underground Storage Tanks (PDF) (4 pp, 216K) *Update*
- Landfill Cover Systems & Energy Production (PDF) (6 pp, 465K)
- Overview of EPA's Methodology to Address the Environmental Footprint of Site Cleanup (PDF) (2 pp, 176K)
- Mining Sites (PDF) (6 pp, 535K)
- Implementing In Situ Thermal Technologies (PDF) (6 pp, 249K)
- Materials and Waste Management (PDF) (4pp, 397K)
GR Technology Primer (PDF) (56 pp, 814K):
Incorporating Sustainable Environmental Practices into Remediation of Contaminated Sites
A Citizen's Guide to Greener Cleanups (PDF) (2 pp, 1.4MB)
- Executive Order 13834 Regarding Efficient Federal Operations.
The EO sets forth requirements that agencies have to meet to make the Federal Government's operations more sustainable. Use of greener cleanup strategies in the US EPA's Superfund and other site cleanup programs helps meet statutory requirements concerning energy and environmental performance in a manner that increases efficiency, optimizes performance, eliminates unnecessary use of resources, and protects the environment.
Learn about footprint assessment tools and view comprehensive reports on footprint evaluations conducted at sites undergoing cleanup. EPA's universal greener cleanup metrics provide a uniform and transparent approach to quantifying the environmental footprint associated with materials, wastes, water or energy that are used or generated during a cleanup. EPA's Spreadsheets for Environmental Footprint Analysis (SEFA) tool is available to help evaluate the environmental footprint of a cleanup project at a detailed level. *Update*
Aligning with National Goals
Learn about executive orders, requirements, and guidance on energy and water management, green purchasing, and environmental stewardship
Questions and comments about EPA's green remediation efforts may be forwarded to:
Carlos Pachon, Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology Innovation.
