Email: Biobased USA Biobased USA LLC Donald Wilshe 4237 Cornelius Road East Bend, NC 27018 800 995-9203 (10am - 10pm EST) |
Soil and Water Remediation The proliferation of the use of toxic chemicals in almost all countries of the world has not been without its consequences, which have taken the form of toxic waste dumps. It's a terrible situation that is growing much worse on a daily basis. In the U.S., the Superfund National Priority List has 1,305 sites on its register, with another 31,552 sites waiting for inclusion! The EPA estimates that 275 million metric tons of hazardous wastes are disposed of each year. In all of North America 140,000 toxic waste dumps have been ID'd ("Breaking the Grip of Cancer"). Horrendous as this situation is, it is nothing compared with what's going on abroad. Pesticides judged too dangerous for domestic us are routinely shipped to other countries. According to US Customs, 630 million pounds of pesticides were exported in 1995, and 688 million the next year. Since then, figures are hard to come by. According to Greenpeace, in the 20 year period from 1969-89, 3.6 million tons of hazardous wastes from OECD (the industrialized west) countries were exported to the third world for disposal. In just the next five years, from 1989 to 1993, this figured exploded to an astounding 6662.6 million tons. The third world has two words for this practice, "toxic tourism." For a much more complete and depressing analysis of what is happening to the world, go to Google and type in "World's Toxic Waste Dumps." In the U.S., the Federal government's "Super Fund," which was formed to fight this serious challenge to our environment has run out of funds. However, even before that, few toxic waste sites were ever remediated. The combination of cost and old technology was too much to overcome. Today, it is almost a forgotten issue. Today, there is some hope. Colloidal chemistry seems to offer the most optimistic workable solution, although costs are still a major issue. This methodology can be used either in-situ or ex-situ in a wide variety of environments and is effective in remediation of hydrocarbons, organic pesticides, chlorinated solvents and other contaminants in the groundwater and soil. The method combines several technologies into a re-circulation system to treat soil and groundwater. These technologies involve groundwater recovery, soil washing, air sparging and the utilization of microbes, enzymes, bio-surfactants and nutrients. The first phase involves groundwater recovery in the area of contamination, into which specialized microbes, enzymes, and bio-surfactants are added. In a statement of oversimplification, this is then re-injected into specially designed points to treat various zones of contamination. This Colloid treatment is effective in the ranges of permeability found within 80% of the United States. The radius of influence is directly affected by soil permeability and flow rate from the extraction well(s). The higher the permeability, the quicker the cleanup time. There are no side streams, wastes, spent catalysts, effluents, air emissions or residues remaining in treated groundwater or soil and there are no special analytical requirements for the applications. Microbes, enzymes, bio-surfactants and nutrients are non-flammable and non-toxic. No special personal protective equipment is required. There are no known limitations to the application of this Colloidal method for remediation of petroleum products, pesticides and chlorinated solvents. An added inducement for its implementation resides in economics, as it provides a viable methodology at a very significant reduction in cost. In a test undertaken in Florida on March 2005, Biobased USA was the sole surfactant and main ingredient used to determine if a toxic waste site, contaminated by past spills of hydrocarbons and chemical volatiles of all sorts, could be reclaimed. The site is one of the most notorious in the state, which was closed down in 1995, when 38,000 tons of toxic wastes were trucked to a state operated pyrolizer for disposal. The initial readings of petrochemical and hydrocarbon saturation of the ground were 9600 ppm. The actual number was probably much higher, but the testing equipment was maxed at that figure. After a tumbling of augur dug samples for a period of twenty minutes, no petroleum residue was observed in the samples of earth that were removed and hand squeezed. The level of petroleum saturation in the test sample had dropped by 99.8% to only 25 ppm, as verified by a state certified testing laboratory. The colloidal based treatment of toxic waste sites holds promise for the future. How widely and how soon it will become implemented will depend upon determination and the availability of suitable funding. |
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