Deep Vadose Zone-Applied Field Research Initiative. Fiscal Year 2011 Annual Report

摘要

Remediation of vadose zone contamination is a significant challenge in the United States, particularly in arid and semiarid regions where the vadose zone can be hundreds of feet thick. At U.S. Department of Energy Environmental Management (DOE-EM) sites, subsurface contaminants include radionuclides, metals, organics, and liquid waste that originated from various sources, including legacy waste from the nations nuclear weapons complexes. Past-practice waste disposal operations allowed waste to be discharged to retention basins, trenches, or cribs where the waste percolated into the soil, and eventually to the vadose zone and groundwater. Contaminated deep vadose zones are a potential source of contamination to the groundwater and other environmental receptors. Through the Deep Vadose Zone-Applied Field Research Initiative (DVZ-AFRI), DOE is using a collaborative approach to develop effective long-term solutions to address one of the nations most difficult cleanup challenges and protect our water resources. That approach involves leveraging investments and scientific expertise from DOE; Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL); CH2M HILL Plateau Remediation Company (CHPRC); federal agencies; national laboratories, including Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Savannah River National laboratory; universities, including Oregon State University and Washington State University; and industrial partners, including ARCADIS, MSE Technology Applications, Inc., and AMEC Geomatrix Consultants, Inc. Collaboration with DOE Office of Science Integrated Field Research Challenges, Science Focus Areas, and other EM-32 centers will also be fostered. This annual report describes the background of the DVZ-AFRI, and some of the programmatic approaches and transformational technologies in groundwater and deep vadose zone remediation developed during fiscal year (FY) 2011.