Enviropacific and the Principal Contractor, global engineering services company Cardno, have undertaken a major remediation program in a coastal part of regional Victoria and next to a major industrial facility.
We were contracted to remove subsurface hydrocarbon contamination from the foreshore area.
Cardno undertook significant site assessment and planning works to ensure Enviropacific were able to deliverer on all technical, commercial, compliance and safety aspects:
- Delineation of hydrocarbons using Laser Induced Fluorescence (LIF)
- Detailed site investigation including test pitting, groundwater well installation and soil and groundwater sampling
- Long-term groundwater monitoring and extensive aquifer testing
- Bench-scale remediation trials leading to on-site remediation trials, with the Sand Washing chosen as the final remediation technology
The remediation program itself involved the construction of a sand washing plant within a fully lined bund, two 1.6 ML water treatment ponds and associated settlement devices and a 15L/s water treatment plant within a fully lined bund.
There have been some unique challenges:
- The site in is in a remote location, 200 km from Melbourne
- The groundwater onsite is relatively shallow, with half of the impacted soil situated below the water table.
- The site is adjacent to protected wetlands.
Enviropacific and Cardnos robust, innovative and cost-effective solutions have, resulted in 70,000 m3 of contaminated soil being excavated and remediated onsite – most has been treated using the sand washing plant, with lesser impacted soils treated via biopiling.
Significantly, the project has amassed more than 32,000 labour hours and at least 6,000 heavy equipment hours, with zero injuries. It’s expected to be completed by the end of the year.