Dispatches from Uganda 2

     I've been in Shilongo for the past couple of days evaluating the water sources and issues that would affect their water quality. Some of the springs are testing positive for bacteria, while the boreholes are testing clean.  The topography is rather undulating, which presents quite a challenge. The students I'm working with are a talented bunch and I've been impressed with their initiative. Hopefully we'll be able to put together a helpful project for the community. ~ John

Dispatches from Uganda

     John McAllister, a project engineer, is currently on a trip to Uganda, working as a mentor for a Tufts University (his alma mater) chapter of the Engineers without Borders program. The project's goal is to provide a safe, clean drinking water supply to the people of the village of Shilongo, an agricultural village of about 1,000 people.  He will provide periodic blog updates of his journey; this is his first entry.

     I arrived in Uganda yesterday after some long travelling.  Scott, one of the project leaders, was there to pick me up at the airport in Entebbe. All together, there are five students from Tufts on the project: Christina, Dave, Drew, Laney, and Scott.  The drive from Entebbe to Mbale was a good six hours, as we got caught in rush hour traffic in the capital, Kampala.  In Mbale, we had lunch with the leader of the NGO we are working with, Foundation for the Development of Needy Communities (FDNC).  They have been very helpful in setting us up and providing us with everything we need.  They set us up in a nice home on the hillside, outside Shilongo, in Nyondo. The house is very nice and even has running water and reliable electricity, which was more than I was expecting! We are about a ten-minute walk away from Shilongo.  The people taking care of the house (David and James) are really nice and they cook delicious food for us.  Last night we played soccer in our front yard with three young kids who live nearby.

     So far the students have completed about 34 community health surveys, which is about the number we were aiming for. The FDNC has provided interns to act as translators (the native language here is Lugisu).

     Today we're going to have one group conducting more interviews and another going around to collect water samples for water quality testing, so I can see where the various sources are. Apparently, during the wet season we are in, there are multiple sources of water for the villagers to draw from.  We hope to set up some meetings with the village leaders and the women this week, and have a whole community meeting this weekend since people are busy during the week with the kids back in school.  So far, so good with the project and hopefully we can put together a successful project to help the people of Shilongo village.

Can Modified Fenton’s Reagent be Used at Sites with Light Non-aqueous Phase Liquid (LNAPL)?

Over the years, we occasionally receive calls where a client asks whether or not modified Fenton's reagent (i.e. hydrogen peroxide and an iron catalyst) can be used at a site where LNAPL is present.  Historically, the application of Fenton's reagent at sites with significant thicknesses of LNAPL has not often been recommended due to potential safety concerns or potential mobilization of NAPL.  Additionally, the application of any oxidant as a sole remedial option at a site containing substantial volumes of NAPL needs to be carefully considered, because the presence of NAPL should be seen as an indication that the mass of oxidant required could be cost prohibitive.  That said, the presence of measurable NAPL should not necessarily preclude the use of Fenton's Reagent as a significant remedial option, in some cases.

Norfolk has had substantial success in using Fenton's Reagent in conjunction with oil recovery mechanisms to enhance the recovery of heating oils and similar petroleum products.  The application of fluid temporarily reduces pore pressures and can "liberate" oil from the soil matrix.  Heat and gasses generated by the Fenton's Reagent can a do the same and also temporarily reduce the viscosity of the oil, thereby creating an opportunity to enhance recovery efforts.  We often find that LNAPL thickness will increase in wells after Fenton's Reagent applications and that oil recovery wells that had previously reached a point of diminishing returns, in terms of oil recovery, will become more productive.  At the same time, treatment of surrounding areas of the site is also accomplished (e.g. an overlying unsaturated soil zone, smear zone, and/or soils and groundwater surrounding the area of NAPL).    

2010 Massachusetts Envirothon

Norfolk's Mark Bartlett joined with over 40 Judges (forming 8 teams of 5+ judges) on May 13, 2010, for the 2010 Massachusetts Envirothon held at the Otter River State Forest in Baldwinville, MA

Over 41 of the state's high schools were represented by teams of students competing for the top prizes.  This year's issue that was addressed by each team of students was "Groundwater Protection".   Click here for more information on this terrific annual event that promotes environmental education and community involvement.

Environmental Business Council of New England's Environ101: Wastewater Series

John McAllister gave a presentation last night (4/29/10) at the Environmental Business Council of New England's Environ101: Wastewater Series,  at Lir Pub on Boylston Street in Boston.  John's presentation gave background on the importance of treating wastewater, the regulations of on-site subsurface disposal systems under Title 5, as well as a brief overview of small package treatments regulated under the DEP's Groundwater Discharge Permit.  The powerpoint slides can be downloaded here, unfortunately though, you won't be able to download the charm provided during the presentation.  If you would like further information on any wastewater and/or permitting issues, feel free to contact John or Kevin Klein at 508-747-7900 extensions 117 and 130, respectively.

Superfund Cleanup Tax Opposed

 

The U.S. Congress has recently proposed reinstatement of the ‘Superfund' tax under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), which expired in 1995. The original Superfund tax was historically imposed upon industry in order to fund the cleanup of abandoned toxic waste sites in the country. Since its expiration the funding for cleanup has come from general revenues from corporate taxes. Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) has introduced a bill to reinstate the original tax, which placed a feedstock tax on 42 industrial chemicals and crude oil.  The chemical industry strongly opposes reinstating the tax, however, fearing that it will drive more of an already ailing domestic chemical industry offshore to countries like China who do not impose a tax of this type. The original tax was designed to create a trust fund for cleanup of orphaned sites. The fund grew larger than originally expected and did not run out money until 2003. It is uncertain at this time how fast, if at all, the bill will proceed. If enough support is garnered, however, the bill could pass as a rider to another bill.  A weak Superfund program may lead to undesirable consequences concerning cleanup of toxic and hazardous waste sites.

Newton MA Stormwater Management Fee

In 2008 the Town of Cohasset, MA  adopted a Stormwater Bylaw.  Norfolk Ram Group, LLC (Norfolk) serves as Stormwater Agent for the Town of Cohasset under the direction of the Conservation Commission (the local board which administers the Stormwater Bylaw).  As Stormwater Agent, Norfolk has had several discussions with the Town Manager and Conservation Commission about ways and mechanisms to help the Town to pay for on-going and necessary stormwater improvement projects.  Some Town stormwater projects have been for improving water quality in coastal and water supply watersheds, and some for control of significant flooding in low lying areas, and some projects address both water quality and flooding.  Paying for maintenance of these systems is also an on-going issue.  The approach adopted in the City of Newton, MA (within the Charles River Watershed) seems to be working, and this is an approach that Cohasset may want to consider.  See the attached article on the Newton Stormwater Fee.

Seminar - Thursday, April 29, 2010 at Lir Pub (5:30 - 7:30)

John McAllister is scheduled to make a presentation on the "Design and Implementation of Title 5 Systems and Small Package Treatment Plants" this Thursday, April 29, 2010 from 5:30 - 7:30. The presentation will be made as part of an event put on by the Environmental Business Council of New England's Environ101 series.  The presentation will take place at Lir Pub on Boylston Street in Boston, MA. For more information and register for the event (free of charge) please visit the Environmental Business Council's website

NAPL Trapping Cap

See the recent article in the  Civil Engineering Journal, concerning a "Dense Non-aqueous Phase Liquid (DNAPL) Trapping Cap"  that passively vents gases related to the decomposition of organic matter, while retaining the coal tar that was mobilized by the gas bubbles.

This reminded me of a similar cap designed and implemented by Norfolk years ago at a site that was in a flood plain for an abutting river in the Boston Metro-West area. 

Norfolk's system was designed to control, capture, and treat DNAPL related contaminants.  The Norfolk site was different in the following ways:

1. Instead of coal tar, we had chlorinated solvents.

2. Instead of permeable gravel, we used sand.

3. Instead of a clay cap, we used a plastic membrane (anchored with soil on top).

4. We encouraged removal by air sparging below the cap.

5. We included a soil vapor extraction system to capture and treat the solvent gases trapped by the cap.

EPA Developing Stricter Environmental Standards for Four Chemicals

 

EPA announced on Monday, March 22, that the agency will be developing stricter risk standards for four suspect carcinogens; tetrachloroethylene, trichloroethylene, acrylamide, and epichlorohydrin. Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and trichloroethylene (TCE) are common groundwater and surface water contaminants and often require treatment in water supplies. PCE is a common dry cleaning and industrial solvent.  Lisa Jackson of EPA announced that new rules will be issued for these chemicals in the next year with the focus being to protect drinking water supplies. Ironically, acrlyamide and epichlorohydrin are impurities that can occur from water purification.

If you require more information on treatment of groundwater or have a contamination problem you need help solving, contact Brian V. Moran, P.E. at (508) 478-1276 X12.