President Carter's 1980 declaration of a state of emergency at Love Canal, New York, recognized that residents' health had been affected by nearby chemical waste sites. The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, enacted in 1976, ushered in a new era of waste management disposal designed to protect the public from harm. It required that modern waste containment systems use "engineered" barriers designed to isolate hazardous and toxic wastes and prevent them from seeping into the environment. These containment systems are now employed at thousands of waste sites around the United States, and their effectiveness must be continually monitored. Assessment of the Performance of Engineered Waste Containment Barriers assesses the performance of waste containment barriers to date. Existing data suggest that waste containment systems with liners and covers, when constructed and maintained in accordance with current regulations, are performing well thus far. However, they have not been in existence long enough to assess long-term (postclosure) performance, which may extend for hundreds of years. The book makes recommendations on how to improve future assessments and increase confidence in predictions of barrier system performance which will be of interest to policy makers, environmental interest groups, industrial waste producers, and industrial waste management industry.

This introductory manual addresses environmental site restoration practices that both ensure compliance with federal statutes and prevent further contamination or expense. It also includes up-to-date information and several new features to enhance the process. Emphasizing environmental chemistry, soil science, microbiology, plant science, and the underlying chemical processes, author John Pichtel discusses relevant chemical principles as they apply to the cleanup and removal of hazardous chemicals from soil, geological strata, and groundwater. The first part of this book provides an overview of the recent history of environmental contamination and the formulation of relevant regulations, leading to regulations for hazardous waste site remediation. This part also provides a background for several salient aspects of site remediation. The second part of the book closely examines field remediation technologies, including phytoremediation, bioremediation, and electrokinetic remediation. Theory of operation, practical considerations, and possible environmental impacts and other consequences of use are also discussed. Readers of the first edition will discover two new chapters in this Second Edition covering permeable reactive walls and technology selection. This updated edition now also includes end-of-chapter questions and instructions for completing two web-based exercises, one for the chapter on environmental site assessments and one for the chapter on technology selection.

Most industrial and hazardous waste management resources cover the major industries and provide conventional in-plant pollution control strategies. Until now however, no book or series of books has provided coverage that includes the latest developments in innovative and alternative environmental technology, design criteria, managerial decision met

Over the last century and a half, groundwaters have become contaminated by a growing number of organic and inorganic substances ranging from petroleum-derived hydrocarbons to radioactive compounds, to cancer-causing hexavalent chromium. The importance of uncontaminated groundwater for agriculture, human consumption, and the environmental health of ecosystems is paramount to the health and productivity of industrial society. Water scientists and managers are focused on developing cost-effective methods to reverse this trend.Several methodologies have been developed, however few are as cost-effective as the use of readily available materials, such as iron and organic compost, for absorbing and isolating contaminants within the matrix of a permeable barrier. The Handbook of Groundwater Remediation using Permeable Reactive Barriers presents readers with this latest technology and developments within four main sections:1. Innovations in Design, Construction, and Evaluation of PRBs2. Development of Reactive Materials3. Evaluations of Chemical and Biological Processes4. Case Studies of Permeable Reactive Barrier InstallationsThe Handbook is one of the first references specifically on this topic. It is an excellent fit for graduate students entering this emerging field as well as professionals conducting research or implementing this technology.