Urban Fill Soil Characterization and Risk Based Management Decisions- A Practical Guide
Bill Swanson, CDM, Inc., Cambridge, MA

Regulatory Incentives to Promote Private Sector Brownfield Remediation and Reuse
Timothy J. Swickard, California Environmental Protection Agency, Sacramento, CA

Cascades Park: Remediation and Beneficial Recreational Redevelopment of a Former Manufactured Gas Plant Site

Mark White, WRS Infrastructure & Environment, 1650 Summit Lake Drive, Tallahassee, FL 32317, Tel: 850-531-9860, Fax: 850-531-9866, Email: mwhite@wrsie.com
David Rountree, WRS Infrastructure & Environment, 1650 Summit Lake Drive, Tallahassee, FL 32317, Tel: 850-531-9860, Fax: 850-531-9866, Email: drountree@wrsie.com
Kent Geis, WRS Infrastructure & Environment, 1650 Summit Lake Drive, Tallahassee, FL 32317, Tel: 850-531-9860, Fax: 850-531-9866, Email: kgeis@wrsie.com
Satish Kastury, WRS Infrastructure & Environment, 1650 Summit Lake Drive, Tallahassee, FL 32317, Tel: 850-531-9860, Fax: 850-531-9866, Email: skastury@wrsie.com
Koren Taylor, City of Tallahassee, 3805 Springhill Rd., Tallahassee, FL 32305, Tel: 850-891-1200, Fax: 850-891-1062, Email: taylorko@talgov.com
Jennette Curtis, City of Tallahassee, 300 South Adams Street, Tallahassee, FL 32311, Tel: 850-891-8850, Fax: 850-891-8277, Email: curtisj@talgov.com
Douglas J. Covert, Hazardous Substance & Waste Management Research, 2976 Wellington Circle West, Tallahassee, FL, 32309, Tel: 850-681-6894, Fax: 850-906-9777, Email: dcovert@hswmr.com
Christopher M. Teaf, Center for Biomedical & Toxicological Research, Florida State University, 2035 Dirac Dr., Tallahassee, FL, 32310, Tel: 850-644-3453, Fax: 850-574-6704, Email: cteaf@mailer.fsu.edu

The Cascades Park site in Tallahassee, Florida is unusual in that it is listed both on the National Register of Historic Places and on the state Brownfields inventory for cleanup.  The environmental impacts of principal interest relate to use of the site from the late-1800’s though the 1950s as a manufactured gas plant (MGP), with typical accompanying contamination by metals, PAHs and BTEX.  Impacts to groundwater are extensive both horizontally and vertically.  Addressing soil impacts and deposits of free MGP product (i.e., coal tar residues) has proven to be a challenge, with obvious site contamination present at high levels to a depth of over 25 feet, and site-related chemicals found at depths greater than 90 feet.  Remediation is further complicated by urban infrastructure, underground utilities, a storm water drainage channel, and major rail line.  Remedial strategies and lessons learned regarding characterization and remediation of contaminated soils, sediments and ground water will be presented in detail.  Extensive air monitoring results collected during remedial activities have demonstrated a general lack of off-site airborne substances of health significance, though detectable odors have been reported from time to time by site personnel and local residents.  Following remediation of soil, sediments and ground water under requirements of Florida DEP and U.S. EPA, future land use of the site is to be a park, one piece of a long-range vision for enhancement of downtown, developed through cooperation among the City of Tallahassee, Leon County and local citizens.  The site represents an excellent showcase of mutual environmental and social benefits that may be achieved by cooperative efforts among responsible parties, state and federal agencies, consultants and local development programs. 

Urban Fill Soil Characterization and Risk Based Management Decisions- A Practical Guide

Bill Swanson, Vice President, CDM Inc., 50 Hampshire St., Cambridge, MA 02139, Tel: 617-452-6274, Email: swansonwr@cdm.com
Pam Lamie, MPH, CDM Inc., 50 Hampshire St., Cambridge, MA 02139, Tel: 617-452-6311, Email: lamiepo@cdm.com

The objective of this paper is to examine a number of common contaminants found in urban fill soil by presenting urban fill background concentrations, disposal facility parameters and limits, and no significant risk limits for site closure. This effort will provide a practical guide in consideration of what might be expected at numerous brownfield sites and how the findings at a particular site can be compared to the information provided to make practical soil management decisions.

It has become evident over the passage of years that urban fill soil may be expected to contain certain contaminants, in particular heavy metals and polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, from specific releases as well as background sources. Natural concentrations and background concentrations are an important sorting and selection criteria as to what chemicals should be selected for additional analysis and those that should be considered background to the analysis, partcularly the risk assessment. The authors propose to present a paper that deals with specific contaminants; lead, arsenic, carcinogenic polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, dioxins, and asbestos. The authors will provide a listing of each contaminant, its usual range in natural and urban fill soils, and its risk based or related thresholds, with emphasis on the New England area. The outcome will be a range of concentrations that can be used as a guide by persons considering Brownfields sites such that their information can be compared to the ranges and brought into meaningful focus.

Regulatory Incentives to Promote Private Sector Brownfield Remediation and Reuse

Timothy J. Swickard, Chief Counsel, California Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Toxic Substances Control, 1001 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814. Tel. 916-324-2837, Fax 916-327-5351, Email: tswickar@dtsc.ca.gov

Governments of growing industrial economies are faced with two substantial sources of urban environmental degradation—one from past activities and one from ongoing activities.  The interior of mature urban communities often contain large areas of environmental contamination from past industrial activity. These sites often sit unmarketable and vacant, allowing the contamination to spread into the surrounding groundwater, land and air environments.  Urban growth is diverted to envelop open space agricultural land and wildlife habitat on the borders of the urban area, creating a second front of degradation commonly known as urban or suburban “sprawl.”

Resolution of both environmental problems created by historical contamination and non-sustainable land-use can be achieved by private sector redevelopment of brownfields.  However, environmental laws and government policies intentioned to restore or protect the environment often inhibit or prevent brownfields redevelopment. Commonly this is attributable to (1) laws assigning legal liability for the past contamination to those purchasing or undertaking the remediation project, and (2) the high transaction costs of and long time delays associated with government oversight.  This paper reports on five governmental policies that could facilitate the remediation and reuse of brownfields.

(1) Necessity – Government lawmakers and regulators must recognize the necessity of immediately addressing these two significant sources of environmental degradation in urban communities.
(2) Immunity – Environmental laws should be amended to provide immunity to innocent parties who undertake the remediation of past contamination.
(3) Efficiency – Regulatory oversight agencies should implement streamlined processes for cleanup and regulatory oversight to reduce the time and transaction cost of brownfields redevelopment.
(4) Certainty – Government should enhance predictability of the final cleanup remedy required for any discrete set of environmental contaminants.
(5) Flexibility – Regulatory oversight agencies should provide flexibility to brownfield redevelopers in the scope and level of cleanups through utilization of institutional controls appropriate for varied end uses.

Top