Provides a detailed background of the technologies available for the bioremediation of contaminated soil & ground water. Prepared for scientists, consultants, regulatory personnel, & others who are associated in some way with the restoration of soil & ground water at hazardous waste sites. Also provides insights to emerging technologies which are at the research level of formation, ranging from theoretical concepts, through bench scale inquiries, to limited field-scale investigations. 95 tables & figures.

In situ bioremediationâ€"the use of microorganisms for on-site removal of contaminantsâ€"is potentially cheaper, faster, and safer than conventional cleanup methods. But in situ bioremediation is also clouded in uncertainty, controversy, and mistrust. This volume from the National Research Council provides direction for decisionmakers and offers detailed and readable explanations of: the processes involved in in situ bioremediation, circumstances in which it is best used, and methods of measurement, field testing, and modeling to evaluate the results of bioremediation projects. Bioremediation experts representing academic research, field practice, regulation, and industry provide accessible information and case examples; they explore how in situ bioremediation works, how it has developed since its first commercial use in 1972, and what research and education efforts are recommended for the future. The volume includes a series of perspective papers. The book will be immediately useful to policymakers, regulators, bioremediation practitioners and purchasers, environmental groups, concerned citizens, faculty, and students.

​This volume provides a review of the past 10 to 15 years of intensive research, development and demonstrations that have been on the forefront of developing bioaugmentation into a viable remedial technology. This volume provides both a primer on the basic microbial processes involved in bioaugmentation, as well as a thorough summary of the methodology for implementing the technology. This reference volume will serve as a valuable resource for environmental remediation professionals who seek to understand, evaluate, and implement bioaugmentation.

In the past decade, officials responsible for clean-up of contaminated groundwater have increasingly turned to natural attenuation-essentially allowing naturally occurring processes to reduce the toxic potential of contaminants-versus engineered solutions. This saves both money and headaches. To the people in surrounding communities, though, it can appear that clean-up officials are simply walking away from contaminated sites. When is natural attenuation the appropriate approach to a clean-up? This book presents the consensus of a diverse committee, informed by the views of researchers, regulators, and community activists. The committee reviews the likely effectiveness of natural attenuation with different classes of contaminants-and describes how to evaluate the "footprints" of natural attenuation at a site to determine whether natural processes will provide adequate clean-up. Included are recommendations for regulatory change. The committee emphasizes the importance of the public's belief and attitudes toward remediation and provides guidance on involving community stakeholders throughout the clean-up process. The book explores how contamination occurs, explaining concepts and terms, and includes case studies from the Hanford nuclear site, military bases, as well as other sites. It provides historical background and important data on clean-up processes and goes on to offer critical reviews of 14 published protocols for evaluating natural attenuation.

Written by leading soil and ground-water remediation scientists, Handbook of Bioremediation presents information regarding the processes, application, and limitations of using remediation technologies to restore contaminated soil and ground water. It covers field-tested technologies, site characterization requirements for each remediation technology, and the costs associated with their implementation. In addition to discussions and examples of developed technologies, the book provides insights into technologies ranging from theoretical concepts to limited field-scale investigations. In situ remediation systems, air sparging and bioventing, the use of electron acceptors other than oxygen, natural bioremediation, and the introduction of organisms into the subsurface are among the specific topics covered in this invaluable handbook.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, our nation began to grapple with the legacy of past disposal practices for toxic chemicals. With the passage in 1980 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), commonly known as Superfund, it became the law of the land to remediate these sites. The U. S. Department of Defense (DoD), the nation’s largest industrial organization, also recognized that it too had a legacy of contaminated sites. Historic operations at Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps facilities, ranges, manufacturing sites, shipyards, and depots had resulted in widespread contamination of soil, groundwater, and sediment. While Superfund began in 1980 to focus on remediation of heavily contaminated sites largely abandoned or neglected by the private sector, the DoD had already initiated its Installation Restoration Program in the mid 1970s. In 1984, the DoD began the Defense Environmental Restoration Program (DERP) for contaminated site assessment and remediation. Two years later, the U. S. Congress codified the DERP and directed the Secretary of Defense to carry out a concurrent program of research, development, and demonstration of innovative remediation technologies. As chronicled in the 1994 National Research Council report, “Ranking Hazardous-Waste Sites for Remedial Action”, our early estimates on the cost and suitability of existing technologies for cleaning up contaminated sites were wildly optimistic. Original estimates, in 1980, projected an average Superfund cleanup cost of a mere $3.