Green Remediation Focus
Crozet Orchard
Crozet, Virginia
Superfund Removal
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Arsenic Accumulators
Irrigation Schematics
Gravity Irrigation
Solar Irrigation
Cleanup Objectives: Remove metals and pesticides such as lead-arsenates from soil at a former apple orchard.
Green Remediation Strategy: Employ phytoremediation supported by gravity-fed and renewable
Energy-powered Irrigation Techniques:
- Installed 20,000 Chinese brake ferns for hyperaccumulation of arsenic existing primarily in surface soil (within nine inches)
- Captures and stores hill-top spring water in a 4,000-gallon tank from which water is transferred by gravity to 17 of 24 fern plots when needed
- Uses solar-powered low-flow pumps to transfer water from a hill-bottom spring to a second storage tank, from which water is delivered to other (sloped) plots by way of gravity-fed drip methods
Results:
- Reduced arsenic concentrations in nineteen plots to below the 58 mg/kg action level after two growing seasons. Sampling data indicate a minimal reduction in arsenic concentration between 73 and 106 mg/kg at the remaining five plots.
- Stores uncontaminated spring water for onsite use during dry spells
- Avoids costs and greenhouse gas emissions associated with consumption of grid electricity during the treatment process
- Provides unobtrusive methods to remediate residential properties
Property End Use: Residential and open space
Point of Contact: Myles Bartos, U.S. EPA Region 3
Update: July 2024
