[CPEO-MEF] groundwater cleanup

[Steve@miltoxproj.org]

-Submitted by Steve Taylor-

>From today's Environmental News Service (2/7/02)

BIOREMEDIATION CLEANS UP GROUNDWATER 

BOISE, Idaho, February 6, 2002 (ENS) - A new bioremediation process is 
making the difficult job of removing chlorinated solvents from 
groundwater much easier 

The process, developed at the U.S. Department of Energy's Idaho National 
Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), takes advantage of 
natural processes to break down trichloroethene (TCE) in groundwater. 

Scientists were trying to find a cost effective way to clean up the 
underground aquifer beneath at INEEL's Test Area North (TAN), which was 
contaminated with organic sludge and wastewater, resulting in a two mile 
long TCE groundwater plume. 

TCE, used for degreasing and one of the most common groundwater 
contaminants at hazardous waste sites in the U.S., had been injected 
into the aquifer over a period of 15 years. Scientists found that the 
INEEL process helps dissolve the TCE, which accelerates its degradation. 


The process is much cheaper than conventional methods and because the 
remediation is done underground, the land remains almost undisturbed. 

North Wind Environmental, Inc., a local engineering and consulting firm, 
has obtained a license to use the INEEL's innovative process called 
Bioavailability Enhancement TechnologyTM (BET). 

"BET is part of a breakthrough in the understanding of bioremediation 
that has the potential to revolutionize the cleanup of chlorinated 
solvent source areas, which are one of the biggest environmental 
challenges facing industry, the government and cleanup professionals 
today," said Kent Sorenson, North Wind director for applied research and 
a former INEEL scientist. 

Success of the large scale test of BET at INEEL has won the approval of 
the state of Idaho and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 
BET, combined with monitored natural attenuation - the natural 
contaminant degradation that takes place in the TCE plume - is expected 
to save $23 million at TAN. 



Steve Taylor
National Organizer
Military Toxics Project
(207) 783-5091 (phone)
(207) 783-5096 (fax)
P.O. Box 558
Lewiston, ME  04243-0558