THE RISE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL SITE ASSESSMENT AND REMEDIATION PROFESSION
Why Site Assessment?
In January of 1970, the president signed the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). This legislation established a national policy of balancing human needs with the preservation of the environment. The main purpose of the legislation was "to declare a national policy which will encourage productive and enjoyable harmony between man [sic] and his [J/C] environment; to promote efforts which will prevent or eliminate damage to the environment and biosphere and stimulate the health and welfare of man [s/c]; to enrich the understanding of the ecological systems and natural resources important to the Nation; and to establish a Council on Environmental Quality."
Title I of NEPA sets forth the national policy on the restoration and preservation of the environment. Under this program the federal government has the responsibility to minimize adverse environmental effects and preserve and enhance the environment by implementing appropriate public plans and policies. In addition, the various federal agencies must make a full and adequate analysis of all environmental effects of proposed programs or actions. Essentially, NEPA requires a systematic scientific study of any project that may have an adverse impact on the environment. These reports are called environmental impact assessments (EIAs) or environmental impact reports (EIRs). Thousands of EIR reports are compiled each year to conform with federal, state and local land-use regulations.
The Process of Site Assessment and Remediation (Cleanup)
Site assessment and remediation is the process of assessing the environmental damage of a site, characterizing the environmental hazards, and cleaning up the site. Generally, site assessment and remediation is done in three phases, conveniently referred to as Phase I, II, and III. Phase I reports seek to identify any potential hazardous materials on the site. Generally, a Phase I environmental assessment will involve reviewing public records to describe the prior uses of the site. Reviewing public records may also include reviewing aerial photographs of the property and surrounding areas, as well as mapping the known locations of nearby contaminated sites. During the Phase I assessment, the site is inspected for obvious signs of contamination, such as asbestos, oil drums, and chemical contaminants. A partial list of items that may be on the site includes storage tanks, transformers (PCBs), asbestos, formaldehyde, radon, or known hazardous materials such as solvents or cleaning solutions. Off-site issues include the location of contaminated soils, wells, and groundwater, sensitive ecological areas, mining activities, or military operations.
During the site inspection, interviews with property owners, tenants, neighbors, and government officials are conducted in order to determine if hazardous materials may have been used on the site. The final step is to prepare a report that outlines the work performed as well as any suspected hazardous material that warrants further study.
If the Phase I study indicates the presence of hazardous materials, a Phase II study is prepared. The most common Phase II study involves the collection of samples of soil and groundwater to determine if contamination exists from on-site or off-site sources. Another common Phase II study is a detailed asbestos study. After the Phase II study is complete, the final step (Phase III) is the actual remediation.
Remediation technologies for water include chemical treatment of contaminated water, removing water, carbon absorption, and bioremediation. Soil remediation technologies include thermal destruction/incineration, chemical treatment of soil, vacuum/vapor extraction, solvent/chemical extraction, and soil flushing/washing. Asbestos abatement generally involves removing the material. Site assessment and remediation work requires both skilled professionals who are able to recognize hazardous materials as well as technicians who can collect samples and analyze the samples for the presence of hazardous substances.
The Rise of an Industry
Most EIRs are prepared by environmental engineering and consulting firms, real estate consulting firms, firms that specialize in planning, and various government agencies. Major federal government employers include the Departments of Defense, Transportation, and Energy, and the Environmental Protection Agency. The majority of remediation work is carried out by environmental and engineering firms. A few of the larger environmental consulting firms include ICF Kaiser Engineers with 2,100 employees, Bechtel Corporation with 820 engineers, and Emcon with 990 engineers.
During the past 20 years this industry has experienced rapid growth. Ac-cording to the Environmental Business Journal, approximately 60,000 firms compete in the environmental protection field. In 1991 this industry had revenues of between $180 and $250 billion. The annual growth rate for all environmental protection industries ranges from 5 percent to 35 percent. In addition, the EPA predicts that environmental expenditures will be at least 50 percent higher than current levels by the years to come. Clearly this is one of the strongest and fastest-growing sectors in the U.S. economy, with high- paying and stable jobs for a range of environmental science professionals and technicians. Besides those job descriptions covered in the following articles, chemists, geologists, geographers, planners, biologists, science technicians, and many others all are represented in this emerging field.
