Contaminated by hazardous wastes dating back to the 1940s, the Shpack Superfund Site required remediation. Various organizations, including the New England District and Baltimore Districts (under two funding programs) of the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Environmental Protection Agency, saw this area as high priority for clean-up and spearheaded a large remediation project to clean the site.
Conti Federal performed environmental remediation at Shpack, including excavation, screening, segregation, characterization, transportation and disposal of hazardous, toxic and radioactive waste contaminants under the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) and Superfund actions. The team implemented time and cost saving measures, most notably developing a material segregation and discrete characterization process to reduce the volume of radiological materials. Conti Federal made quick field decisions by operating an onsite gamma spectroscopy lab. In total, Conti Federal excavated, screened and characterized nearly 58,000 cubic yards of material, transporting 51,000 cubic yards off-site. Conti Federal oversaw the implementation of an investigation in accordance with the Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Site Investigation Manual for the entire site to confirm the 9.4-acre site had been properly remediated.
The Shpack site posed extremely difficult conditions due to major wetland areas, so Conti Federal utilized dewatering pumps during all excavation operations. Crews also used weir tanks to settle out contaminated sediments, helping to alleviate water issues.
Conti Federal received a performance evaluation rating of excellent for this project.
Key features of the project included:
“Their dedication and team effort and support to the government throughout the execution of the project has been exemplary.”
– USACE Resident Engineer
