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NATURAL ATTENUATION OF CHLORINATED SOLVENTS AT MULTIPLE AIR FORCE BASE DEMONSTRATION SITES
Citation:
Kampbell*, D H., J. E. Hansen, T. H. Wiedemeier, AND B. M. Henry. NATURAL ATTENUATION OF CHLORINATED SOLVENTS AT MULTIPLE AIR FORCE BASE DEMONSTRATION SITES. Presented at Conference on Environmental Research, Manhattan, KS, 05/2001.
Description:
Natural attenuation treatability studies(TSs) were conducted at 14 US Air Force bases. Only sites where biodegradation of CAHs was suspected were selected for the study. The major initiative was to evaluate the effectiveness of monitored natural attenuation(MNA) at sites contaminated with chlorinated solvents and associated daughter products(CAHs). The study was designed to evaluate naturally occurring degradation mechanisms for CAHs and migration limitations of ground water plumes. The degree and rate of natural bioremediation of CAHs were highly site specific and depended on prevailing biochemistry and geochemistry of ground water at the site. All sites where petroleum hydrocarbons were commingled with CAHs the sites were actively methanogenic and reductive dechlorination was occurring. Field-scale biodegradation rate constants for potentially stable plumes ranged from 0.00005/day to 0.013/day. Modeling results using first-order kinetics showed that ground water quality standards will not be achieved throughout the plumes within 100 years unless a more aggressive remediation program than MNA was implemented. Natural attenuation processes at only two of the 14 sites studied were sufficient to use MNA as the sole remediation. Some form of engineered remediation such as source reduction at the other sites was recommended in conjunction with MNA.