Time can be a major factor in the decision to treat contamination on site instead of resorting to physical removal (e.g. off-site disposal). Once you have classified the waste then the only limitation for off-site disposal is how many excavators, tippers etc you can / want to use to move the soil. Disposal generally costs a lot more than treatment would, but it does provide cost and time certainties which are what most project managers really want, assuming the money can be spared.
The remediation industry has always known that this is the case. I’m glad to say that the market for solutions which complete remediation within short time frames has improved significantly over the last few years. Technology has not necessarily changed, but the successful and quick application of several technologies has. Now all you need to do is identify which ones suit your particular scenario and for that you will need to speak to the professionals. A Remedial Options Appraisal can be a good place to start.
The main time defining factor can be getting your ‘treatment technology’ to the contaminant, due to the generally complex interactions of contamination in soils this can be tricky and can take time, for example if we can get a chemical oxidant directly to the contamination, treatment can occur quickly, however if the oxidant is only coming in to contact with the edge of the contamination then not only will treatment take longer, several treatments may be required to achieve targets. Techniques to improve the mixing of oxidant and contaminant and therefore reducing treatment times include the application of surfactants to the soil in order to release the contamination, and/or mixing the contaminated soil and oxidant by mechanical means.
There are many ways to speed up remediation, too numerous for one post. As always we’re happy to talk so feel free to e-mail or phone us (0131 538 8456).
2021
Soil remediation guide
Approaching soil remediation without any prior knowledge can be difficult and uncomfortable at times, especially when it can potentially be very costly. This free eBook will help you understand the whats, the whys and the hows of soil remediation in the simplest terms.