At hundreds of thousands of commercial, industrial, and military sites across the country, subsurface materials including groundwater are contaminated with chemical waste. The last decade has seen growing interest in using aggressive source remediation technologies to remove contaminants from the subsurface, but there is limited understanding of (1) the effectiveness of these technologies and (2) the overall effect of mass removal on groundwater quality. This report reviews the suite of technologies available for source remediation and their ability to reach a variety of cleanup goals, from meeting regulatory standards for groundwater to reducing costs. The report proposes elements of a protocol for accomplishing source remediation that should enable project managers to decide whether and how to pursue source remediation at their sites.

At hundreds of thousands of commercial, industrial, and military sites across the country, subsurface materials including groundwater are contaminated with chemical waste. The last decade has seen growing interest in using aggressive source remediation technologies to remove contaminants from the subsurface, but there is limited understanding of (1) the effectiveness of these technologies and (2) the overall effect of mass removal on groundwater quality. This report reviews the suite of technologies available for source remediation and their ability to reach a variety of cleanup goals, from meeting regulatory standards for groundwater to reducing costs. The report proposes elements of a protocol for accomplishing source remediation that should enable project managers to decide whether and how to pursue source remediation at their sites.

At hundreds of thousands of commercial, industrial, and military sites across the country, subsurface materials including groundwater are contaminated with chemical waste. The last decade has seen growing interest in using aggressive source remediation technologies to remove contaminants from the subsurface, but there is limited understanding of (1) the effectiveness of these technologies and (2) the overall effect of mass removal on groundwater quality. This report reviews the suite of technologies available for source remediation and their ability to reach a variety of cleanup goals, from meeting regulatory standards for groundwater to reducing costs. The report proposes elements of a protocol for accomplishing source remediation that should enable project managers to decide whether and how to pursue source remediation at their sites.

In this updated and expanded second edition, new literature has been added on contaminant fate in the soil-subsurface environment. In particular, more data on the behavior of inorganic contaminants and on engineered nanomaterials were included, the latter comprising a group of “emerging contaminants” that may reach the soil and subsurface zones. New chapters are devoted to a new perspective of contaminant geochemistry, namely irreversible changes in pristine land and subsurface systems following chemical contamination. Two chapters were added on this topic, focusing attention on the impact of chemical contaminants on the matrix and properties of both liquid and solid phases of soil and subsurface domains. Contaminant impacts on irreversible changes occurring in groundwater are discussed and their irreversible changes on the porous medium solid phase are surveyed. In contrast to the geological time scale controlling natural changes of porous media liquid and solid phases, the time scale associated with chemical pollutant induced changes is far shorter and extends over a “human lifetime scale”.

This volume offers detailed information on the behaviour of various water pollutants, and on the principles and concepts of groundwater flow and transport. It will help readers to understand and execute the planning, supervision, and review of solute transport and groundwater modeling projects. The book also discusses the role and fate of elements that have been identified as major contaminants in surface and subsurface waters, and their adverse effects on ecology and human health. The book explores this theme throughout four sections – a. Understanding Soil-Water Systems, b. Fate and Transport of Pollutants, c. Physico-Chemical Treatment of Wastewater and d. Microbial Techniques Used to Decontaminate Soil-Water Systems. Introducing readers to a range of recent advances concerning the fundamentals of subsurface water treatment, it offers a valuable guide for teachers, researchers, policymakers, and undergraduate and graduate students of hydrology, environmental microbiology, biotechnology and the environmental sciences. It also provides field engineers and industrial practitioners with essential support in the effective remediation and management of polluted sites.

There may be nearly 300,000 waste sites in the United States where ground water and soil are contaminated. Yet recent studies question whether existing technologies can restore contaminated ground water to drinking water standards, which is the goal for most sites and the result expected by the public. How can the nation balance public health, technological realities, and cost when addressing ground water cleanup? This new volume offers specific conclusions, outlines research needs, and recommends policies that are technologically sound while still protecting health and the environment. Authored by the top experts from industry and academia, this volume: Examines how the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of the subsurface environment, as well as the properties of contaminants, complicate the cleanup task. Reviews the limitations of widely used conventional pump-and-treat cleanup systems, including detailed case studies. Evaluates a range of innovative cleanup technologies and the barriers to their full implementation. Presents specific recommendations for policies and practices in evaluating contamination sites, in choosing remediation technologies, and in setting appropriate cleanup goals.

Advances in Remediation Techniques for Polluted Soils and Groundwater focuses on the thematic areas for assessment, mitigation, and management of polluted sites. This book covers advances in modelling approaches, including Machine Learning (ML)/ Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications; GIS and remote sensing; sensors; impacts of climate change on geogenic contaminants; and socio-economic impacts in the poor rural and urban areas, which are lacking in a more comprehensive manner in the previous titles. This book encompasses updated information as well as future directions for researchers working in the field of management and remediation of polluted sites. - Introduces fate and transport of multi-pollutants under varying subsurface conditions - Details underlying mechanisms of biodegradation and biodetoxification of geogenic, industrial and emerging pollutants - Presents recent advances and challenges in assessment, water quality modeling, uncertainty, and water supply management - Provides authoritative contributions on the diverse aspects of management and remediation from leading experts around the world