Month: May 2013

Selecting An Environmental Consultant; What Firm Is Best For Your Situation

Posted on by Jeff Carnahan

Written By Stephen R. Henshaw, P.G., President & CEO, EnviroForensics
As seen in the May 2013 issue of the Cleaner & Launderer

Selecting an environmental con­sultant can be a daunting task and for small business owners that do not have day-to-day exposure with soil and groundwater contamination it’s very difficult to know the difference between consultants. This article is meant to shed light on the differences between environmental consultants and to present the different methods for selecting an environmental con­sultant. It’s my goal to show people that selecting the right consultant for your situation is a very important decision and should not be taken lightly. If a business person doesn’t know that there are differences be­tween environmental consultants, countless hours and dollars may be wasted, projects could drag on and site closure could be a distant glimmer.

This article will go through some of the selection and screening meth­ods that small business owners use when selecting an environmental consultant to address environmental liabilities.

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Practical Approaches for Remediation of VOCs in Clayey Soils

Posted on by Jeff Carnahan

Written by Stephen R. Henshaw, P.G., President & CEO, EnviroForensics
As seen in the April 2013 issue of Cleaner & Launderer

The question is often posed, “How much will it cost to clean up contamination at a drycleaner?”  Invariably the answer is, it depends.  Factors that come into play include, but are not limited to, the concentration of VOCs present in the subsurface, whether or not the groundwater is impacted, the depth to groundwater, how far the contamination has spread, whether the cleanup will be focused on residential or commercial land use, and the type of geology and stratigraphy underlying the site.  This article focuses on how clayey soils affect cleanup considerations.

Clay is a naturally occurring material composed of very fine-grained particles.  Clayey soil is a term used for soils containing at least 30% clay.  When clay comes in contact with liquids, it swells and becomes plastic.  When it dries out it shrinks and cracks. Clay is very porous and can hold liquids (e.g. water) between the fine-grained particles, but it is not very permeable, meaning liquids won’t move through the material rapidly.  Clayey soils can hold water and moisture, but water does not move through it very fast.  Likewise, air doesn’t move through clayey soils very well.

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