Environmental impact of soil remediation activities: evaluation of quantitative and qualitative tools

Abstract

When evaluating remediation technologies for contaminated soil and groundwater, the beneficial effect of the remediation, namely cleaner soil and groundwater, are mostly emphasized without consideration of the environmental impact of the remediation activities themselves. Nevertheless, different qualitative, semi-quantitative and quantitative methods to estimate the environmental impact of soil remediation activities are available. Within the framework of contaminated site management, an environmental impact assessment can be performed for two main reasons: to guide a user in his choice for a potential (future) soil remediation technique, or to evaluate the environmental performance a soil remediation technology after the remediation has been carried out. In the present study, different tools which can be used to estimate or quantify the environmental impact of a soil remediation process were critically evaluated. Therefore, 3 case studies were worked out, in which several remediation options were evaluated for each case, based on data of the soil remediation project itself or on data from pilot projects. The evaluation tools that were used consisted of a BATNEEC (Best available Technique not Entailing Excessive costs) analysis, different types of CO2 calculators and two more detailed LCA (life cycle analysis)-based evaluation methods. A life cycle management (LCM) approach structuring environmental activities, combined with life cycle analysis (LCA) for a quantitative examination, can be helpful for the selection of site remediation options with minimum impact on the ecosystem, human health and the environment in general. However, LCA-based evaluation methods are rather complex and require much more data than a classical BATNEEC analysis or the calculation of the carbon footprint. The case studies worked out in this papers highlight the most important parameters to take into account for the evaluation of the environmental footprint of soil remediation activities and provide a guidance for environmental impact assessment within the framework of contaminated site management.status: publishe