Remediation and Reuse of Contaminated Land

Prior to the late 1950s the site was used as an excavation pit for sand and gravel. The quarry was subsequently used for the disposal of waste materials from 1950 until 1966. 10 acres of the 28-acre site has been used as a disposal area for several hazardous waste contaminants that included volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as benzene, tetrahydrofuran, toluene, vinyl chloride and xylene; other organics such as phenols and PCBs as well as lead. The main area of contamination is in the southern half of the 10 acre area which encompasses about 6 acres which

Leaching of pesticides, herbicides and other Argo-chemicals, these chemicals are the overriding causes of agricultural pollution owing to the numbers of invasive pests, weeds, and diseases. They're highly toxic and have the potential of remaining in the environment for ages. When it rains, these chemicals will leak

Accordingly, in order to qualify as a “pollutant” the physical material—whether it be a solid, liquid, gaseous, or thermal—must be either an irritant or a contaminant. Absent contrary policy provisions, the term contaminant will be afforded its usual, ordinary, and accepted meaning. In Clendenin Bros. v. U.S. Fire Ins. Co., 390 Md. 449, 463 (2006), the Court of Appeals observed that the word contaminant means “‘something that contaminates’ and ‘contaminate’ as ‘to soil, stain, corrupt, or infect by contact or association’ or ‘make inferior or impure by mixture.’” Id. at 462 (quoting WEBSTER'S THIRD NEW INTERNATIONAL DICTIONARY 1197 (1993)). Whether a physical material constitutes an irritant or a contaminant may depend not only on whether the material is toxic in nature, but also on whether the material may be safe when applied intentionally and legally. Id. at

The term pollutants can be defined as dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discarded equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt and industrial, municipal, and agricultural waste discharged into water. The leaching of chemicals from the timbers can be categorized under chemical wastes (from timbers) into the pollutant category. These chemicals have also altered the integrity of the water since it has shown to decrease the fish population in Middle Fork. In addition to this, the gasoline can also be considered a conventional pollutant since it is related to oil and it alters the physical integrity of the water by creating a sheen.

Other pollution sources include chemical plants, coal-fired power stations, oil refineries, nuclear waste disposal activity, large animal farms, plastic factories, and metal production factories. The soil becomes contaminated by many chemicals and pathogens; this passes on to humans through direct contact via food and water. Overuse of pesticides and chemical fertilizers causes toxins to enter the food chain.

Water Pollution has been an increasing problem over the last few years. Pollution comes from many different things; agricultural, urban runoff, industrial, sedimentary, animal wastes, and leeching from landfills/septic systems just to name a few (Resources). The reason why pollution has increased over the years is because the rise in population and the advancements in technology the society has made. If society plans on having their resources here for many years to come they are going to have to make some drastic changes in the way they treat the earth, and these changes will have to start with their pollutants (Foundation).

An additional large cause of ocean pollution that is not as widely known as other sources; because, many consider it under the category of “ocean dumping” but in reality it is it’s own category of garbage dumping. The title given to this cause may be misleading as it is “...human waste and sewage water that has been partially treated or untreated...” entering the ocean. It is polluting the water directly like chemicals that are dumped. There is another name for this, sludge dumping, this is the less scientific term. Not all causes are related to directly dumping toxins and waste into the

Environmental impact and/or attribution of environmental contamination caused by petroleum and gas exploration, production, and storage activities:

Contaminated land has been perceived as the occurrence of relatively rare, but potentially catastrophic incidents, with unforeseen and poorly understood consequences for human health, communities (Verplanken, 1990) and the environment, for example Barnes et al (2002); Levine (1982). Currently, contamination represents a widespread infrastructural problem of varied intensity and significance (Nathanail, 2004). Mass industrialisation and the technological advancements seen throughout much of Europe and North America during the 20th century can be characterised by disproportionately large increase in emissions of contaminants into the environment, where soil is often the ultimate sink

CERCLA established a comprehensive framework to address areas that have been contaminated by a wide-range of harmful substances (including RCRA’s hazardous

Use of pesticides can result in residue levels in commodities and in the immediate environments, such as soil, biota and aquatic systems.

The largest source of contamination is runoff from land. Toxic runoff can be sewage, rainwater flowing over exposed topsoil, flooding or agricultural runoff. Rain can cause runoff of chemicals or waste that can seep into creeks, rivers and other waterways that lead to the ocean. Some of the chemicals found could be antibiotics or waste from animals, pesticides from crops or from pollutants, originating in the air, which have settled on land and washed away. Unless a solution to pollution runoff is found, this type of contamination will continue indefinitely and contribute to the deterioration of the ecosystem in the

Soil contamination occurs when an excessive amount of a substance is present in the soil at higher than normal concentration without necessarily causing any direct harm (Vance, Pierzynski, & Sims, 1994). Soil contamination can lead to soil pollution, which is the evolution of soil contamination, causing some type of direct harm; thus a soil can be contaminated but not polluted (Vance et al., 1994). In most cases, oil contaminated soils have some type of direct or indirect negative consequences on the environment. Crude oils, when found in little to excessive amount, can destroy ecosystems and impact human health. A thorough description of

Waste oil, solvents, acids and alkalis, toxic paint wastes, nitrates, perchlorides and peroxides, pesticides and sludge.

Phytoremediation is the process by which plants and trees are used to remove or stabilize hazardous pollutants that exist in soil, sediments, surface water or groundwater. The EPA (environmental protection agency) estimates that more than 30,000 sites in the U.S. are in need of environmental treatment, and a great number of these sites are contaminated with highly toxic metals. Abandoned or under-used commercial and industrial facilities, termed as “brownfields,” are a major contributor to this environment concern. “Brownfields” pose significant health risks to nearby residential populations and threaten the plant and animal life close to them. Phytoremediation provides a very