By Jennifer Lesser, Contributing Writer
As environmental preservation efforts continue to grow, Garden State environmental remediation firms are hard at work removing pollutants and contaminants from water and soil at sites across the state. These efforts are targeted to restore the environment and ultimately protect human health. They have become an essential piece of the puzzle in the process of purchasing and redeveloping commercial, industrial, and residential sites across New Jersey.
According to EJ Baumgarten, program manager for TRC, the impact of remediation efforts on both public health and the environment has been extremely positive. “Thousands of contaminated sites have been cleaned up over the years, resulting in cleaner air and water, improved health of ecologically sensitive areas and the revitalization of communities affected by vacant, contaminated properties,” he says.
At PennJersey Environmental Consulting, the firm is currently involved in everything from the typical environmental due diligence, gas stations and dry cleaners to more complex matters involving large industrial sites, brownfield redevelopment and landfill closure. According to President Rodger Ferguson, LSRP, “When conducted properly, remediation will always positively impact the environment and health of local residents.”
As just one example, during a recent landfill redevelopment for the construction of a grid supplied solar array, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) wanted a fresh look at a landfill that was long out of compliance. Using drone technology, PennJersey was able to successfully obtain thermal imaging to assess the landfill cap, leachate, and methane measurements to assess the landfill gas generation. “We were able to easily show the integrity of the landfill cap that the regulators needed to see in order to permit the project to move forward without the expense of completely rebuilding the landfill cap,” Ferguson explains.
According to Mark Fisher, CHMM, LSRP, senior principal at The ELM Group, Inc., a division of Haley & Aldrich, Inc. (H&A), the firm successfully completed an innovative cleanup project at the Rutgers Busch campus that utilized thermal remediation and bioremediation to address chlorinated volatile organic compounds (CVOCs) in groundwater in a complex bedrock geologic environment.
Following the thermal treatment, an enhanced in-situ bioremediation injection program was completed that reduced the residual groundwater contamination by 99%.
Of course, some contaminants are more difficult to remove than others. According to Ferguson, the remediation of the so-called “forever chemicals” known as PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) is particularly difficult because they are so ubiquitous in the environment. The compounds are known to be recalcitrant to typical remediation technologies, and they are associated with numerous health risks.
As one method of combating PFAs, H&A has developed a proprietary remediation technology known as EradiFluor™. The cost-effective technology can be used not only as part of the remediation in the environment (typically groundwater), but also an application to treat landfill leachate, help address PFAs in municipal drinking water, and for wastewater treatment plants to meet stringent regulatory effluent discharge standards. “EradiFluor relies on ultraviolet (UV) light and can be combined with other common treatment compounds to actually destroy PFAS,” Fisher says.
Another environmental remediation trend is the continued need to revitalize contaminated sites for the ever-changing demand for residential, mixed-use and commercial/industrial/warehouse space. “This sometimes means that sites that were remediated decades ago for certain uses now need to be re-purposed, often resulting in the need to revisit past remedies to ensure compliance with current environmental requirements and potentially more restrictive uses,” Fisher explains.
Fortunately, the innovation taking place in the field of remediation technology is helping New Jersey firms take giant leaps forward when it comes to either creating new tools or improving upon existing methods. Baumgarten points to developments in high-resolution direct sensing technology, such as Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), and high-density sampling technologies as examples of how TRC is able to better characterize difficult source areas and target the most problematic areas with remedial strategies.
TRC is also at the forefront of PFAS remediation efforts with the development of an active in-situ remediation technology for these chemicals in groundwater, which was developed with partners at Accelerated Remediation Technologies, Inc. This approach uses groundwater circulation and foam fractionation/stripping and recovery to dramatically reduce PFAS concentrations at a significantly faster rate.
Other innovations in the field include mobile applications that allow field staff to utilize a tablet or phone to record sample location and other field data while being connected directly to databases that house all of an environmental remediation firm’s analytical/laboratory data. “This tool allows for real time decision-making in an easy and collaborative manner between field and office staff, and improves accuracy of our data collection and subsequent data evaluation and visualization,” Fisher says.
Baumgarten says that “after several decades of successful remediation efforts across the state, most of the ‘easy’ sites have been cleaned up,” he says. “The next step will be addressing more complicated sites that remain, which will require a combination of technical expertise, creative problem solving, intimate knowledge of the rules and regulations and an ability to effectively communicate with diverse stakeholder groups.”
To access more business news, visit NJB News Now.
10 West Lafayette Street
Trenton, New Jersey 08608-2002
Phone:
973-882-5004
Fax:
973-882-4648
10 West Lafayette Street
Trenton, New Jersey 08608-2002
Phone:
609-393-7707
Email:
© 2025 New Jersey Business Magazine | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use
Site By: 