Everything You Need to Know About Environmental Remediation

There is a wide range of industries that at times must use, mix, emit or dispose of potentially hazardous contaminants or pollutants that threaten human health and our environment. The companies, industries or government entities that are responsible for hazardous waste incidents are required by law to remediate the contamination. Since the polluting businesses are not usually qualified or interested in doing this work, they hire an environmental remediation business to do it. Who are these environmental remediation companies? What does remediation involve? This blog will try to explain the basics in order to help you learn what you need to know.

Environmental remediation deals with the removal of pollution or contaminants from environmental media such as soil, groundwater, sediment or surface water. Through a carefully designed process, these waste products are removed and disposed of or broken down for the protection of human health, as well as the restoration of the environment.

The Environmental Protection Agency has clear standards and guidelines that are necessary to follow in the environmental remediation process. Additionally, in some areas of the country, local or state legislative standards may be even more demanding. Professional environmental remediation services will know the applicable regulations and standards in your area. Which is just one of many reasons for businesses and factories to work closely with environmental remediation experts if their industry has contaminated the environment in any way. Even though each case is unique, environmental remediation management follows a process to ensure compliance and health standards are being met.

Although it is not possible to cover all of the different elements and idiosyncrasies of every remediation process, the following is a basic overview of the process most often followed in order to conduct safe and effective remediation of affected areas and matrices. 

1. The remediation team gets a full understanding and overview of the contamination itself, what is the pollutant, how extensive, where is the site, what will be required, etc.?
2. The remediation team researches the local requirements and standards and begins to formulate a plan for how the process will go forward and what the most effective and safe method of remediation will be.
3. Excavation is necessary when hazardous contaminants are found in the soil. Remediation then requires the soil in affected areas to be carefully removed and safely disposed of.
4. Dredging of rivers or other bodies of water is necessary when the soil below the water is  polluted by a spill or dump of contaminants affecting silt, clay and mud below the surface.
5. Thermal desorption is a newer technology used in instances where dredging and excavation fail to meet the necessary standards. This process involves using an instrument that separates contaminants from the soil and makes collecting and removing known pollutants much easier.
6. The pump and treat method is used for groundwater that has been contaminated. Environmental remediation management requires that the affected groundwater be pumped out and carefully filtered until all the contaminants are removed.
7. Nanoremediation uses extremely small reactive agents that react with the pollutants to degrade or even destroy them. This process has mostly been used in groundwater remediation, but continuing improvements are promising for use in soil remediation.

Mold Remediation

If mold is discovered in your offices, storefront, building, etc, its source must be identified and dealt with. This often means that remediation involves stopping the source of moisture in the building causing the mold to flourish. Additionally all mold must be eradicated using chlorine bleach or biocides. In almost every case an environmental consulting agency must retest the site after a defined period of time in order to guarantee that toxic mold is completely removed and that there is no longer any health risk.

Asbestos Remediation

Most asbestos remediation occurs during the demolition or deconstruction of a building. If asbestos is present and gets disturbed, the remediation process ensures the contaminated area is sealed off and demolition is done as carefully as possible in order to limit dispersion of particles. Any demolition must also reduce human risk of inhalation of particles by utilizing personal protective equipment (PPE). All asbestos materials must be contained in sealed containers/bags and properly disposed of as hazardous waste.

Lead Remediation

If lead is identified in paint or plumbing pipes, the environmental remediation process usually involves removing the hazardous material (i.e., paint, water pipes) and replacing the hazardous components with safer materials.

Radon Remediation

Radon is a naturally occurring hazardous gas. Its remediation often depends on the location of the radon. One method involves depressurization – this is the process of drawing air or moisture from contaminated soil or areas and venting it away where the hazardous gas will not pose health risks. Or perhaps the radon simply needs to be minimized from a building. This means that cracks in a foundation or other open pathways for the gas are sealed. This prevents gas from entering buildings and polluting the air that is inhaled by occupants.

Because of the sensitive nature of remediation work, the dangers posed, the extensive regulations and processes, the very specialized work that must be done to remediate contaminated soil and water and the penalties for failing to remediate after contaminations, your business needs the very best help it can find. Choosing the best from a list of environmental remediation companies can be difficult.

When seeking environmental remediation services your business will want to research potential companies to discover their capabilities, experience, reputation, certifications, turnaround times (TATs) and overall environmental remediation management record before choosing the one that will work best for your situation and needs.

In California and Hawaii, Torrent Laboratory checks all of the boxes for excellence in environmental remediation services. Their services are also available in most states.  

Guided by the principles of Six Sigma, Kaizen, and Lean Thinking, Torrent’s full-service lab offers the fastest turnaround times in the industry, CA ELAP, Department of Energy (DOE ELAP) and Department of Defense (DoD ELAP) certification as well as unparalleled customer service.

Torrent Laboratory provides the region’s most advanced capabilities:

• Fastest TATs in the industry
• Gold standard certifications
• Unrivaled technical and customer support
• Unparalleled on-time performance
• Impeccable quality
• Competitive pricing

If your business needs a laboratory that has a long and strong reputation with environmental remediation services then contact Torrent Laboratory right away and find some peace of mind.