Superfund Program Removal Action Support

Rapid Turnaround of Analytical Results Supports Superfund Program Removal Actions 

On-Site Analytical Support Accelerates Site Cleanup and Restoration

• CSS mobilized specialized analytical units to a former auto manufacturing site undergoing remediation.  Once onsite, CSS provided 24-hour turnaround on more than 600 soil samples over a six-week period. EPA’s On-Scene Coordinator (OSC) used the analytical data we provided to direct the daily removal actions at the site. When presented with unexpected and accelerated deadline demands, our staff successfully extracted and analyzed 102 samples over just two days, with both on-site staff and off-site chemists participating in the analysis, review, and report preparation.  The presence of the high-throughput mobile analytical laboratories on site increased the speed and efficiency of the cleanup and improved the outcome for the affected community.
• CSS transported mobile laboratory units to an abandoned facility. While onsite, we analyzed 875 drum waste samples for volatile organics (VOCs). During the initial phase of the project, we received and analyzed 75 samples, providing results within 5 days. Follow up work consisted of 800 samples, received in 100 sample batches per week over the course of the project. The rapid turnaround of results by our chemists allowed the OSC to effectively handle the massive number of drums and accelerate clean up and restoration of the site.
• CSS deployed three mobile laboratory vehicles near a former utility site in Vermont to provide rapid, onsite analyses of 250 surface and subsurface soil, sump water, sediment, soil gas, and indoor air samples over four days. Our staff provided same-day confirmatory data, summarizing and mapping the analytical data for better interpretation and clearer presentation to the On-Scene Coordinator (OSC) and state representatives. Our on-site analysis helped the OSC direct on-going site activities more accurately; capture the extent of soil contamination in a single mobilization; and determine the source and extent of the indoor air contamination in the nearby apartment complex.