Environmental studies conducted by Lytle Water Solutions personnel have typically involved the identification, characterization and then remediation of various surface and ground water contamination issues. Effective remediation of surface and ground water contamination requires an initial characterization of the magnitude and spatial extent of the problem, design of a remedial action plan, approval of the plan by the appropriate regulatory agency and implementation of the plan. LWS personnel have been involved in all of these aspects of environmental studies. Representative projects are described below.
Ground
Water Remediation in Alluvial Aquifers
Approximately 1400 T. of liquid fertilizer was lost from a storage tank in Fremont, Nebraska and infiltrated into a shallow alluvial aquifer. A monitoring well system was designed and installed to characterize the extent of the contamination; a remedial action plan was developed, approved and implemented.
A leak from a gasoline storage tank in Albany, New York resulted in ground water contamination. The tank was situated on dredged materials adjacent to a river that created complex geologic conditions. In addition, local tidal influences produced daily changes in ground water gradients which changed the magnitude and direction of ground water flow. As a result of these conditions, the contamination was contained in a relatively small area. A remedial action plan was designed, approved and implemented and has now been successfully completed.
Environmental Baseline Studies
LWS staff have designed and implemented baseline environmental monitoring programs in connection with mine permitting, power plant licensing, and for compliance monitoring at facilities in California, Colorado, Florida, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania and Wyoming.
Environmental Audits
Purchase of an ammonia terminal in an industrial area near Joliet, Illinois, was pending; so an environmental audit was conducted to assess potential environmental liabilities associated with the purchase. Monitoring wells were installed to evaluate both contamination on-site and contamination that could be migrating on-site from adjacent industrial facilities. The results of the study were used in the evaluation of the purchase of the property.
Environmental Assessments/Pro-Active
Remediation
An historic zinc-processing facility in Sauget, Illinois wanted to understand its environmental liability. A monitoring well and sampling program was designed and implemented to characterize the environmental issues. Based on the results of the initial environmental assessment, a voluntary remediation program was then designed and implemented to reduce metals input to the local alluvial aquifer.
Tracking Spills in an Alluvial
Aquifer
There was a gasoline tanker that overturned near one of the Parker Water and Sanitation District's alluvial production wells in Colorado. Monitoring was set up to insure that no gasoline migrated to the potable water supply well while the spill area was being remediated. The integrity of the potable water supply well was protected through the monitoring and clean-up program.