On 12 March 2021, Orion received the 2020 Project Merit Award from the Climate Change Business Journal (CCBJ) for Greenhouse Gas Reduction in Remediation. This project involved the accelerated shut down of active remedial systems and a reduction in groundwater monitoring at a complex site. Sustainability evaluation results indicated a 99 percent reduction in sustainability metrics including greenhouse gas and air emissions, water and energy usage, and accident risks.
The site contains two active bulk fuel terminals and a former retail gasoline station with multiple water-bearing zones, heterogeneous lithology, and residential and surface water receptors. Remedial operations in 2016 included dual-phase extraction and oxygen injection systems, monthly manual LNAPL monitoring and recovery, and quarterly to annual groundwater monitoring at 90 monitoring wells. Orion transparently communicated with the regulatory agency with the goal of shutting down active systems and transitioning to alternative remedies with a focus on sustainable remediation and overall risk reduction. Through successive system shutdowns and innovative data analysis, Orion demonstrated that the rate of natural attenuation in groundwater exceeded calculated contaminant mass discharge throughout the plume and was sufficient to achieve remedial objectives. Between 2018 and 2020, the regulatory agency approved permanent remedial system shutdowns and suspension of LNAPL recovery. Orion subsequently completed a plume stability and well network analysis that resulted in regulatory approval of a 40 percent reduction in the monitoring and analytical program, further decreasing the environmental footprint for ongoing monitoring.
Congratulations to Senior Staff Engineer Carina, Senior Staff Engineer Sierra, and Senior Project Geologist Scott for receiving this award and making an impact in our community!