EEI - Environmental Engineering, Inc.

Intermet Lower Basin Plant

INTERMET FORMER LOWER BASIN PLANT, VA PC#1992-0288
Description of Role: Primary Environmental Consultant/Contractor
Key Personnel: Andrew Alden, Christopher M. Swan, III, Chris Lalli, Jeffrey Fisher,
Project Cost: $457,915.95 to date
Time Period of Project Work: 1997 to present
Client: Intermet Corporation
Client Representative: Mr. Terry Moore
Regulatory Agency: Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ)
Regional Office(s): West Central (1999 to 2002) and South Central (2002 to present)

Introduction

Environmental Engineering, Inc. (EEI) is presenting this project as an example of EEI’s ability to assume project management from a previous consultant and provide CAP development, CAP implementation, and post-CAP monitoring at a former industrial site. EEI successfully attained free product endpoints on-site, and anticipates the pending closure of the pollution complaint case by the DEQ.

Scope of Work:

A fuel oil release from a 20,000-gallon capacity UST was reported to the Virginia State Water Control Board (now the DEQ) in July 1991. Intermet Corporation (Intermet) contracted Geotechnical and Environmental Services to conduct site characterization and submit an SCR to the DEQ. The SCR (submitted November 1, 1991) documents the installation of 12 monitoring wells. Three of the wells were destroyed during the UST removal. The SCR indicated elevated TPH levels in the soil and groundwater.
Virginia Geotechnical Services, P.C. prepared an SCRA (submitted December 1994) that delineated static water levels, contaminant concentrations, contaminant and fate transport, and risk/remediation assessment. The SCRA noted that a free-product level of approximately 0.9 ft was measured in one monitoring well (MW-2).
In January 1995, weekly free-product removal from MW-2 and weekly monitoring of MW-4, MW-5, MW-9, and MW-12 began. Central Virginia Laboratories & Consultants, Inc conducted weekly sampling. Free-Product/Monitoring reports were prepared by Wiley & Wilson.
Due to high fluctuations of the groundwater table, several monitoring wells were screened below the high water table. As a result, the DEQ directed Intermet to install additional wells, to be screened appropriately. Professional Service Industries, Inc. prepared an SCRA#2 (submitted August 1995) that provided additional information on site assessment, risk assessment, and remediation assessment. The SCRA#2 also documents the installation of the additional monitoring wells.
EEI was contracted by Intermet to act as the primary environmental contractor in March of 1999, and was responsible for responding to a DEQ request for the development of a CAP. The CAP submitted by EEI concluded, that between 2,142 to 8,414 lbs. of free product existed on-site. EEI performed a 118-hour DPE pilot study. By the end of the 118-hour pilot study, EEI had recovered an estimated 190 lbs. of petroleum at an average rate of 1.61 lbs.-per-hour. DPE was the remedial technology recommended in the CAP based on its high rate of petroleum recovery and its cost effectiveness. The CAP also recommended that four new petroleum recovery wells be installed on-site due to the questionable construction of some of the monitoring wells previously installed.
Following approval of the CAP by the DEQ, EEI initiated CAP Implementation by installing four new free product recovery wells, and consulting with Intermet to obtain an agreement with the local publicly-owned treatment works (POTW) to discharge DPE treatment system effluent to the sanitary sewer on-site. The agreement negotiated by EEI contained strict water quality limits of 10 parts-per-million TPH in the treatment system effluent. To meet these limits, EEI designed, fabricated, and installed a 4000-gallon, biologically-enhanced, sparging system to polish the effluent generated by standard DPE treatment system.
A mobile DPE system was mobilized by EEI to the site during every month between October 1999 and October 2002 where free product was detected on-site in excess of the remedial endpoint. An iron-based scale began to coat internal components of the DPE systems, which were equipped with water-sealed LRPs, which caused the DPE system to shut down, and required extensive maintenance. Fortunately, EEI was able to draw on its’ fleet of DPE recovery systems to provide systems equipped with oil-sealed LRPs. The seamless transition from the use of a water-sealed to the use of an oil-sealed LRP on-site provided a more cost effective cleanup though a reduction in both maintenance costs and DPE system down time.
Post-CAP monitoring culminated in the in fourth consecutive quarterly monitoring report (submitted in November 2003), in which the free product remedial endpoint had been maintained throughout the quarter. This was sufficient for EEI to recommend site closure to the DEQ based upon the successful attainment of remedial endpoints. EEI is awaiting closure of the pollution complaint case by the DEQ before properly abandoning all the monitoring and recovery wells on-site.

Staff and Resource Involvement

Mr. Alden has provided engineering oversight and project management assistance. Mr. Lalli has been responsible for scheduling of personnel and field equipment to the project since 2001. Mr. Lalli was responsible for CAP development, including the evaluation of DPE pilot study data. Mr. Cirillo was responsible for project management during CAP implementation, which has included oversight of petroleum recovery well installations; periodic mobilization and operation of a mobile liquid ring pump DPE system. Mr. Cirillo also provided liaison services between the client, two subsequent landowners, the local POTW, and the DEQ. Mr. Jeffrey Fisher was responsible for obtaining permission to discharge treated petroleum-contaminated water to the City of Lynchburg’s POTW, and for arranging with the local electric utility for a three-phase electric power supply on-site. Mr. David Tollefson was responsible for field installation of three-phase electrical connection and installation of telemetry capabilities on EEI’s mobile DPE systems. Mr. Cirillo has handled the drafting of quarterly monitoring reports for the project. EEI field technicians collected all field data and provided support for the operation of equipment and machinery.
Equipment owned and operated by EEI that was used on this project includes mobile liquid ring pump DPE systems, and a 50Kw diesel generator. Petroleum recovery well installation via was subcontracted to Bedford Drilling Company, Inc., however EEI provided field of management all recovery well installations.