| The MTBE Treatment Profiles provide information about completed and ongoing applications of treatment for methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) in drinking water and media at contaminated sites by describing sites using in situ and ex situ technologies to treat MTBE in drinking water, groundwater, and soil. While the focus of the profiles is on sites with treatment of MTBE, some of these sites also were contaminated with benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX), other oxygenates such as tert-butyl alcohol (TBA), or other compounds such as chlorinated solvents or polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The MTBE treatment profiles provide a summary of relevant site information, contaminants and media, technology design and operation, and cost and performance results, as well as a point of contact and references. The technologies (both in situ and ex situ) presented in the profiles include: air sparging, bioremediation, drinking water treatment, chemical oxidation, multi-phase extraction, phytoremediation, product recovery, pump-and-treat, and soil vapor extraction. |
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| This guide was prepared within the framework of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Work Session on Statistical Dissemination and Communication. It is intended as a practical tool to help managers, statisticians and media relations officers use text, tables, graphics and other information to bring statistics to life using effective writing techniques. It contains suggestions, guidelines and examples – but not golden rules. This publication recognizes that there are many practical and cultural differences among statistical offices, and that approaches vary from country to country. |
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| The Brownfields and Land Revitalization Technology Support Center (BTSC) created this bulletin to focus on implementing a data management program for a Triad project. It includes a brief introduction to the Triad approach, answers to frequently asked questions about data management on Triad projects, three examples of data management with state agencies as the primary regulatory body, and sources of additional information for project teams and stakeholders who develop or provide input on a data management. |
EPA 542-F-07-001
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| This reprint, entitled 'Managing Uncertainty in Environmental Decisions,' was published as a feature article in the October 1, 2001 issue of Environmental Science & Technology. The article argues that using field analytical technologies in the context of a dynamic work plan and careful management of sampling, analytical, and decision uncertainties can significantly bring down the costs of contaminated site investigations and cleanups, while improving confidence in project decisions. |
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| An abandoned electroplating company in Sarasota, Florida was the site for the emergency removal of contaminated soils. Since the water table was so close to the surface, an on-site dewatering operation and water treatment facility was the most cost effective way to treat the 400,000 gallons of contaminated groundwater. During this three year project for the EPA Region IV team, wells were installed to determine groundwater contamination from cyanide, VOCs, and various heavy metals. This video demonstrates the steps taken to install these systems. Running time is 10 minutes. |
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| Set guidelines for the determination of the depth to water measurements in an open borehole, a cased borehole, a monitor well, or a piezometer. |
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| On October 11, 2000, a coal slurry impoundment in Martin County, KY collapsed, causing a release of 250 million gallons of coal waste into two separate river basins. The spill posed a major threat to the environment, effecting 100 miles of waterways, causing 5 water treatment plants to shut down, and creating a state of emergency in 10 counties. Thirty-six agencies responded, forming a unified command structure to handle the cleanup which involved 540 cleanup personnel. Some of the coal sludge was physically removed by mixing it with lime, loading it onto trucks, and hauling it to earthen impoundments. Settling ponds were also used to allow the heavier portions of the coal slurry to separate from the water phase. Weir dams were employed to filter some of the water and to provide flood control. After the cleanup, the restoration of private properties and temporary impoundments was initiated. Running time is 21 minutes. |
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| Outlines the steps required to measure air changes per hour in an room using a GrayWolf Sensing Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) probe. |
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| US EPA has updated its guidance to reflect the latest evaluation of currently available data and technologies for VOC sample handling and preservation procedures for solid samples. The procedures are designed to minimize VOC losses through the two most common mechanisms, volatilization and biodegradation. This guidance appears in SW-846 Method 5035A, which includes a 30-page appendix of detailed explanatory material. |
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| This report outlines a method for estimating timeframes required for natural attenuation processes, such as dispersion, sorption, and biodegradation, to lower contaminant concentrations and mass to predetermined regulatory goals in groundwater systems. The time-of-remediation (TOR) problem described in this report is formulated as three interactive components: (1) estimating the length of a contaminant plume once it has achieved a steady-state configuration from a source area of constant contaminant concentration, (2) estimating the time required for a plume to shrink to a smaller, regulatoryacceptable configuration when source-area contaminant concentrations are lowered by engineered methods, and (3) estimating the time needed for nonaqueous phase liquid (NAPL) contaminants to dissolve, disperse, and biodegrade below predetermined levels in contaminant source areas. |
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Available http://water.usgs.gov/pubs/wri/wri034057/
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| EPA developed a methodology to analyze and quantify the environmental footprint of activities often involved in contaminated site cleanup. A project team can use the information gained by application of the methodology to identify best management practices (BMPs) that target large contributions to the footprint at a particular site and help achieve a greener cleanup. The Agency's corresponding report presents a total of 21 metrics corresponding to core elements of a greener cleanup and a seven-step process to quantify the footprint. The report addresses:the purpose of the methodology, the value of footprint analysis, and the associated level of effort and cost; considerations for evaluating and using the analytical results; and illustrative approaches to reduce the footprint through various BMPs. |
EPA 542-R-12-002
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| The Environmental Protection Agency is amending a variety of testing and monitoring requirements in the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) hazardous and nonhazardous solid waste regulations and for certain Clean Air Act (CAA) regulations that relate to hazardous waste combustors. These amendments allow more flexibility when conducting RCRA-related sampling and analysis by removing from the regulations a requirement to use the methods found in '‘Test Methods for Evaluating Solid Waste, Physical/Chemical Methods,' also known as 'SW–846,' in conducting various testing and monitoring and by limiting required uses of an SW–846 method to circumstances where the method is the only one capable of measuring the particular property (i.e., the method is used to measure a required method-defined parameter). |
Download Federal Register Notice (782K/56pp/PDF)
Visit Methods Innovation Rule (MIR) Web Site
SW-846 Manual
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| Describe the Gas Chromatography (GC) analysis of vapor phase samples and is applicable to the analysis of Fixed/Permanent gases. |
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| This method is applicable to the microwave-assisted acid digestion of animal and/or plant tissue samples. |
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| The purpose of this report is to describe the current uses of biosolids in the United States, especially the progress being made at mine reclamation sites. The background section defines and describes the production and traditional uses of biosolids. It responds to common concerns over biosolid use, such as leaching, and explains the safeguards associated with every biosolids project. Finally, case studies are examined and analyzed to determine the best use of biosolids to date. |
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| Describe the Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) analysis of air samples collected using Tedlar bags. The methods are applicable to the analysis of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). |
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| Guidelines for set up of a mobile analytical lab for on-site analysis of VOAs, BNAs, PCBs, and metals present in waste and soils. |
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| The purpose of monitor well development is to ensure removal of fine grained sediments (fines) from the vicinity of the well screen. The most common well development methods are: surging, jetting, overpumping, and bailing. |
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| Methods used for the installation of the wells. Monitor well installation creates a permanent access for the collection of samples to assess groundwater quality and the hydrogeologic properties of the aquifer, in which contaminants may exist. |
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| This fact sheet explains what monitored natural attenuation means when the term is used to describe a potential strategy to remediate a contaminated site. It also describes the various physical, chemical and biological processes of natural attenuation that may occur at a site. This fact sheet is written for an audience with little or no scientific background and is meant to aid Federal, State, and local regulators in educating the public on complex environmental issues. Other informational materials are in preparation and will provide more specific details and scientific depth for the evaluation of monitored natural attenuation as a remedy at specific sites. |
EPA 600-F-98-022
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| Volume 1 of 3 consists of three sections that describe 1) the conceptual background for natural attenuation for inorganic contaminants, 2) the technical basis for attenuation of inorganic contaminants in ground water, and 3) approaches to site characterization to support evaluation of MNA. Emphasis is placed on characterization of immobilization and/or degradation processes that may control contaminant attenuation, as well as technical approaches to assess performance characteristics of the MNA remedy. A tiered analysis approach is presented to assist in organizing site characterization tasks in a manner designed to reduce uncertainty in remedy selection. |
EPA 600-R-07-139
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| In a separate chapter for each listed contaminant, Volume 2 of 3 describes (1) the natural immobilization or degradation processes that can result in the attenuation of the contaminant and (2) data requirements to be met during site characterization. The document emphasizes characterization of immobilization and/or degradation processes that may control contaminant attenuation, as well as technical approaches to assess performance characteristics of the MNA remedy. A tiered analysis approach is presented to assist in organizing site characterization tasks. |
EPA 600-R-07-140
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| This report reviews the current state of knowledge on the transport and fate of MTBE in ground water, with emphasis on the natural processes that can be used to manage the risk associated with MTBE in ground water or that contribute to natural attenuation of MTBE as a remedy. It provides recommendations on the site characterization data that are necessary to manage risk or to evaluate monitored natural attenuation (MNA) of MTBE, and it illustrates procedures that can be used to work up data to evaluate risk or assess MNA at a specific site. |
EPA 600-R-04-179
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| This fact sheet explains what monitored natural attenuation means when the term is used to describe a potential strategy to remediate a contaminated site. It also describes the various physical, chemical and biological processes of natural attenuation that may occur at a site. This fact sheet is written for an audience with little or no scientific background and is meant to aid Federal, State, and local regulators in educating the public on complex environmental issues. Other informational materials are in preparation and will provide more specific details and scientific depth for the evaluation of monitored natural attenuation as a remedy at specific sites. |
EPA 600-F-98-021
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| The EPA Science Advisory Board reviewed the Environmental Protection Agency's research program for monitored natural attenuation (MNA) of contaminants in groundwater, soils, and sediments; evaluated ORD’s research in terms of its scientific quality and its effectiveness and utility for promoting sound decisions about the use of MNA as a remedy at specific sites; and assessed the applicability and limitations of the EPA’s guidance as expressed in the 1998 Technical Protocol on MNA. |
EPA-SAB-EEC-01-004
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| This report from EPA's Technology Innovation Program reviews field assays and other technologies with the potential to measure and monitor arsenic in the environment. The strengths and weaknesses of the various assays are discussed with respect to their sensitivity, ability to detect the chemical states of arsenic, performance in various media, potential interferences, and ease of operation. The report relies mainly on government documents and the published literature. |
EPA 542-R-04-002
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| This study, conducted by BP Corporation North America Inc. and the Underground Storage Tank (UST) Programs of U.S. EPA Regions 4 and 5, was undertaken to determine whether measurements of groundwater parameters obtained using direct-push wells are comparable to those obtained from conventional monitoring wells. Direct-push monitoring wells contained no filter pack and were pushed into the subsurface; conventional monitoring wells contained filter packs and were installed with typical drilling and completion methods. The measured parameters were groundwater levels, chemical concentrations (BTEX, MTBE, TSS, and naphthalene), hydraulic conductivity, and natural attenuation (geochemistry) parameters. The study was conducted at two sites in Ohio and two sites in Georgia and they were chosen so there was a wide-range of soils, conductivities, and concentrations. |
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| This Engineer Manual (EM) provides geotechnical and chemical guidelines for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) elements in the planning, installing, and reporting of soil and/or bedrock borings, monitoring wells, and other geotechnical and geochemical devices at hazardous, toxic, and radioactive waste (HTRW) sites. These guidelines are a compilation of those procedures necessary for the acquisition of environmentally representative geotechnical data and samples, using conservative methods documented in a comprehensive manner. |
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| This report describes the state-of-the-practice for multi-phase extraction (MPE) of contaminated soil and groundwater, focusing primarily on the application and use of MPE at sites with halogenated volatile organic compounds (VOCs). MPE is an innovative technology that has the potential to be more cost-effective and to remediate sites more quickly than with use of conventional technologies. |
EPA 542-R-99-004
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| In an investigation of the potential of using oyster fungi (Pleurotus ostreatus) to biodegrade alkaline battery constituents, expired and leaking batteries were placed in sawdust along with fungal spawn. Biodegradation progress of the hazardous component, potassium hydroxide, in three treatment containers was compared against the control, i.e., three containers of batteries and sawdust without fungi. After five weeks of fungal growth, the pH of the sawdust mixture had decreased by a significant amount in all three samples of the fungal mixture (from ~10 to below 9), whereas a comparatively small pH decrease was observed in the control mixtures. Further research is needed to determine the long-term viability of using mycelia for biodegradation of alkaline batteries. |
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