PCB Response

PCB Response

AquAeTer was called to an emergency response when PCB contamination was found during source investigation activities at a manufacturing facility in Ohio. AquAeTer’s preliminary investigation showed that the groundwater varied between 10 to 25 feet below ground surface at the interface between the bedrock and the overlying glacial till, with a potential flow to an adjacent stream. AquAeTerdesigned, permitted, and oversaw the construction of a groundwater trench system to collect potentially contaminated groundwater and form a barrier to the nearby stream. The trench system spanned 600 feet along the perimeter of the facility and intersected the interface where the contamination originated.

AquAeTer’s engineers also designed a temporary system to treat contaminated surface water and the trench water collected during trench construction. The treatment system included over 2,000 ft of temporary piping, an oil/water separator, multi-stage filtration (to 0.45 micron), and dual-carbon treatment. The system was designed with a rated capacity of 20 gpm. AquAeTer prepared the discharge permit application and worked closely with the Ohio EPA to expedite approval and issuance of a revised permit that allowed the facility to discharge directly into their existing outfall. This provided a significant time and cost savings to the client. AquAeTer also provided technical assistance with the operation of the trench system, emergency high-flow treatment system, and prepared monthly discharge monitoring reports for the permitted discharge.

AquAeTer provided the following services to its client for this sampling and reporting project:

  • Trench Collection System design and development
  • Construction QA/QC Oversight
  • Permitting and Reporting
  • Design of temporary collection and pump-and-treat system
  • System Start-up and Troubleshooting
  • Operator Training