Soil and Groundwater Investigation
Over the course of the years, a heavy equipment manufacturer had disposed of a variety of waste material on-site in compliance with the existing requirements at that time. New federal and state environmental regulations resulted in detailed governmental site investigations with the intention of listing the site on the National Priority List.

In order to evaluate the subsurface environmental characteristics of this 163 acre industrial site that has been in operation since the 1950's, numerous investigative techniques were implemented by EPSYS. These techniques included the installation and sampling of overburden and bedrock groundwater monitoring wells, advancement and sampling of test borings, conductance of an extensive soil gas survey, and monitoring of well pumping tests.

Given the cabonate nature of the bedrock underlying the site, a detailed bedrock surface contour diagram was generated. This data was utilized, along with fracture tract analyses, to install 22 perimeter groundwater monitoring wells, nine of which were coupled pairs designed to independently monitor both shallow and deep groundwater zones in the most likely areas for contaminant transport. As a result of various supplementary investigations on the site, a total of 34 groundwater monitoring wells have been installed to date. Seventeen of these groundwater monitoring wells are sampled on a quarterly basis.

Test borings were advanced and sampled in and around specific solid waste management units and along the site's perimeter. The purpose of this task was to determine the presence of contamination and to delineate lateral and vertical extents. One solid waste management unit in particular had a history of metal hydroxide waste disposal. Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) analysis determined that, although metal waste was present, leaching to underlying native soil was minimal.

Potential contaminant source areas were identified through the implementation of a three phase soil gas survey. A total of 64 soil gas samples were collected and analyzed using gas chromatography. The results of the investigation identified three potential source areas that may be contributing to groundwater contamination. One of which corresponded with a former waste oil lagoon which operated on-site in the past.

Throughout these investigations, continual written correspondence and verbal communication with the state regulatory agency allowed for smooth transitions from one investigation to another. All of the site activities were conducted in accordance with a site health and safety plan which was modified as new situations arose. Currently, a remedial feasibility study is underway for one of the solid waste management units and a dye test is scheduled to further identify contaminant flow paths.

The federal government decided not to list the site on the National Priority List. Control of the facility was remanded to the state regulatory agency under a consent order, an agreement was negotiated with EPSYS' assistance, and the industry is maintaining full compliance with the agreement.