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Engineering Technical Support Center Annual Report Fiscal Year 2015
Citation:
Bronstein, K. AND J. McKernan. Engineering Technical Support Center Annual Report Fiscal Year 2015. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, EPA/600/R-16/232, 2016.
Impact/Purpose:
This report highlights significant projects the ETSC supported in fiscal year 2015 (FY15). These projects addressed an array of environmental scenarios, such as remote mining contamination, expansive landfill waste, cumulative impacts from multiple contamination sources, and persistent threats from abandoned industrial sites. Constructing and testing new and innovative treatment technologies through pilot and field research is a major component of meaningful remediation.
Description:
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) Office of Research and Development (ORD) created the Engineering Technical Support Center (ETSC) in 1987, one of several technical support centers created as part of the Technical Support Project (TSP). ETSC provides engineering expertise to Agency program and regional offices and remediation teams working at contaminated sites across the country. The ETSC is operated within ORD’s Land Remediation and Pollution Control Division (LRPCD) of the National Risk Management Research Laboratory (NRMRL) in Cincinnati, Ohio. The ETSC’s mission is to provide site-specific scientific and engineering technical support to Remedial Project Managers, On-Scene Coordinators, and other remediation personnel at contaminated sites. This allows local, regional, or national authorities to work more quickly, efficiently, and cost effectively, while also increasing the technical experience of the remediation team. Since its inception, the ETSC has supported countless projects across all EPA Regions in almost all states and territories. This report highlights significant projects the ETSC supported in fiscal year 2015 (FY15). These projects addressed an array of environmental scenarios, such as remote mining contamination, expansive landfill waste, cumulative impacts from multiple contamination sources, and persistent threats from abandoned industrial sites. Constructing and testing new and innovative treatment technologies through pilot and field research is a major component of meaningful remediation. The ETSC conducts such pilot and field research. For example, ETSC teams spearhead field projects on the cutting edge of remediation research in the areas of bioremediation and groundwater treatment, active sediment capping, in-situ stabilization, and sustainable site cleanup. The ETSC organizes and reports on significant developments in environmental engineering in the form of Engineering Issue Papers (EIPs) and peer-reviewed journal publications. The ETSC has also undertaken newer initiatives that integrate sustainability into community and land use plans. While ETSC’s central focus is to bolster technical expertise for site-specific remediation at contaminated sites, ETSC teams are reaching out to support other efforts in pollution prevention, thereby reducing the Agency’s burden from legacy sites in the future. NRMRL/LRPCD and the ETSC have continually evolved to meet the demand, as well as scientific and engineering needs, of the EPA program offices and regional clients.