Sludge and processed waste disposed of onsite and seeped into the groundwater, contaminating it with volatile organic compounds such as trichloroethylene and other harmful contaminants that can easily evaporate into the air. The EPA focused cleanup efforts on treating contaminated groundwater and soil and excavating and disposing of buried drums.
Conti Federal excavated, removed and sampled over 300 drums (both crushed and intact) from 11 test pits in support of this Superfund RI/FS project conducted with full oversight by EPA Region 2. Conti Federal investigated the nature of drummed chemical wastes located in the Drum Disposal Area and excavated a series of test pits specifically located to gather a representative sample from the entire disposal area. The Conti Federal team then designed and implemented an excavation plan accessing all of the drum layers and the underlying clay formation. Utilizing shoring systems to minimize the size of each excavation, Conti Federal limited the number of drums exposed at one time, providing significant savings to the client by reducing the number of drums removed. In addition, Conti Federal reduced the possibility of a major release due to a ruptured drum by opening the drums in a remote area using a remote-operated drill before screening and staging the drums for characterization sampling.
Conti Federal attended and gave presentations regarding the excavation plan at public meetings and participated in a contingency plan drill with the client and EPA emergency response personnel.
Key features of the project included:
