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| Brownfields Weekly |
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February 14, 2002 THIS WEEK:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- If your organization is hosting or sponsoring a brownfields-related conference this year, publicize it on our Conferences page. Email your conference information to editors@brownfields.com. Click here to visit the Brownfields.com Conferences page for the latest industry events. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Innovative Agreement Spurs Cleanup on Contaminated Reservation SEATTLE, Washington - The EPA and the Confederated Tribes of Washington state's Colville Reservation have created a unique hazardous waste cleanup/economic development partnership that will help hasten the return of contaminated property to productive use. Under the agreement, the Colville Tribal Enterprises Corporation (CTEC) will finish the cleanup at the former site of Quality Veneer & Lumber, Inc., in partnership with EPA, and then develop the property for commercial re-use. According to John Iani, Regional Administrator in Seattle, the agreement highlights how "new thinking" can often tackle environmental challenges. "EPA and the Colville Tribe both want to get to the same place," said Iani. "We're working as equal partners to protect our families, clean up the environment and invest in a better economy. By giving this property the attention it needs so it can be put back into productive use, we all benefit." In 1998 EPA issued an Order to Quality Veneer and Lumber, Inc., the then-owner of the property, to address environmental problems on the company's property resulting from past operations. The company completed most of the required cleanup work before filing for bankruptcy in September 2000. As the bankruptcy proceedings moved forward, Colville Tribal Enterprises Corporation expressed an interest in acquiring the QVL property. But, aware of the unresolved environmental issues at the site, CTEC consulted with the tribe's Environmental Trust Department and EPA in an effort to better understand what environmental work remained. In June of this year, the tribe approached EPA with the concept of coordinating environmental work, in which the tribe's Environmental Trust Department, acting under their tribal law, would join forces with EPA's Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) authority. Together, the tribe and EPA would and act as a "co-regulator" at the site, with CTEC conducting the environmental work specified in the agreements. Sharing the tribe's goals of cleaning up the property, reducing environmental and health risks, and returning the site to productive use, EPA agreed to the arrangement and EPA and the ETD issued "Consolidated Administrative Orders on Consent." The agreements are effective immediately and work is expected to begin by spring of 2002.
New Bioremediation Process Cleans Up Groundwater BOISE, Idaho (ENS) - A new bioremediation process is making the difficult job of removing chlorinated solvents from groundwater much easier. The process, developed at the U.S. Department of Energy's Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), takes advantage of natural processes to break down trichloroethene (TCE) in groundwater. Scientists were trying to find a cost effective way to clean up the underground aquifer beneath at INEEL's Test Area North, which was contaminated with organic sludge and wastewater, resulting in a two mile long TCE groundwater plume. TCE, used for degreasing and one of the most common groundwater contaminants at hazardous waste sites in the U.S., had been injected into the aquifer over a period of 15 years. Scientists found that the INEEL process helps dissolve the TCE, which accelerates its degradation. The process is much cheaper than conventional methods and because the remediation is done underground, the land remains almost undisturbed. North Wind Environmental, Inc., a local engineering and consulting firm, has obtained a license to use the INEEL's innovative process called Bioavailability Enhancement Technology (BET). "BET is part of a breakthrough in the understanding of bioremediation that has the potential to revolutionize the cleanup of chlorinated solvent source areas, which are one of the biggest environmental challenges facing industry, the government and cleanup professionals today," said Kent Sorenson, North Wind director for applied research and a former INEEL scientist. Success of the large scale test of BET at INEEL has won the approval of the state of Idaho and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. BET, combined with monitored natural attenuation - the natural contaminant degradation that takes place in the TCE plume - is expected to save $23 million at Test Area North.
Plan to Attend The Houston Mayor's Office of Environmental Policy 4th
Annual Brownfields Redevelopment Workshop Announcing the 4th Annual Brownfields Redevelopment Workshop for brownfields stakeholders everywhere. The Workshop will provide opportunities to learn from and talk to individuals directly involved with the successful risk-based cleanup, financing, insurance, transfer, and redevelopment of Houston's local brownfields. Mark your calendar and make plans to attend the plenary session, breakout discussions, a keynote address during lunch, an awards ceremony, and a bus tour of several local brownfields. For more information on this
conference, contact:
Brownfields Documentary Looking for More Cities to Include NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana - The Urban Waste Management & Research Center (UWMRC) has documented Brownfields success stories in all 10 EPA Regions and is looking to include more cities. During a recent meeting of the production and development crew for the UWMRC and Wild Hare Productions (the contracted film and edit company), it was discovered that each of the regions were represented with not only city and state officials, but businesses and organizational units. "We knew that we were getting close to our internal time-line," remarked Dr. John W. Sutherlin, series producer and director, "but we were unsure of just how every interview fell geographically. So we started plotting the interviews on a map with the EPA Regions overlaid and found that we were further along than planned. For such a huge project, that was a positive sign. One of our goals is to include a wide range of projects from as many regions as possible." The 10-part series will be part of the "Our Urban Environment" format developed by the UWMRC for two previous projects dealing with municipal waste management and city water quality. The success of these past efforts is evident in the world-wide distribution to more than 30 countries. The Brownfields series, entitled "Reclaiming America's Cities," looks to be a larger effort due to both EPA and White House support for such projects. Presently, the crew is editing and reviewing past filming in Arizona and footage provided by cities and states across the US. Scheduling has begun for the next round of filming that will begin this spring along the East Coast. For those interested in participating either through interviews or simply by supplying footage of brownfields projects, contact: John Sutherlin, PhD, phone (504) 280-6189; email jsuthe9831@aol.com; or visit the The Urban Waste Management & Research Center online: http://www.uwmrc.org.
Land Recycling Program Helps Central PA's Economic Future The Harbison-Walker property in Clearfield, Pennsylvania, long an area blight, is on its way to helping the region build a better economic future, thanks to Pennsylvania's Land Recycling Program. The 40-acre site along Route 322 was operated for decades as a refractory plant. The refractory business closed in the early 1980s, and at least a dozen other businesses operated on part of the property. Since that time, CCEDC received a $120,000 grant from the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) under the Industrial Site Reuse program to hire a contractor to perform an environmental assessment of the property and develop a cleanup plan. The assessment identified some minor areas of contamination on the property. Two underground heating oil and diesel fuel tanks had leaked, and about 166 tons of petroleum-contaminated soil were removed and properly disposed at a permitted facility. Another small area where soil was contaminated with a chlorinated solvent was cleaned using a soil vapor extraction system, and all structures on the property except one have been demolished. "The Act 2 release of liability will undoubtedly stimulate private investment and greatly assist CCEDC's focused effort to revitalize the economy of the Greater Clearfield area," CCEDC Executive Director Thomas Stojeck said. "This project has been a great partnership among DEP, DCED and the CCEDC." Redevelopment is already occurring at the site. A 25,000-square foot, multi-tenet building will be constructed on 5.5 acres this year by the CCEDC to house manufacturing and industrial startup companies. In July, a 45,000-square foot "green technology" office building will be built on seven acres as the new headquarters for PennDOT's Engineering District 2-0 employees. The Harbison-Walker site is the sixty-third property cleaned up in northcentral Pennsylvania since the Land Recycling Program began in 1995. There are another 65 regional sites currently in the program. For more on Pennsylvania's Land Recycling Program, click here.
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