Contaminated Sediments at Navy Facilities: Cleanup Alternatives

摘要

The goals of sediment remediation are to remove contaminated sediments from the environment, obstruct contaminant migration into the environment, and/or minimize exposure of ecological or human receptors to sediment contaminants. Contaminated sediments can be either left in place or removed, and often several cleanup techniques are used in combination or in sequence. In some situations, the best solution may be to allow natural burial and chemical weathering to permanently reduce risk. In other cases, sediments can be left in place with a low-permeability and erosion-resistant cap. In cases of relatively high risk of leaving sediments in place, dredging may be required to remove sediments from their existing environment. Once removed, the sediments may require dewatering or treatment prior to disposal, and may be disposed in upland disposal sites, in subaqueous CADs or CDFs. Innovative in situ treatment technologies are under development, some of which may provide beneficial use of the contaminated sediments as feed stock for the manufacture of Portland cement, light-weight aggregate, architectural tiles, or for low- contaminated sediments compost.