Technology Programme for Soil and Groundwater
Contamination 2000

2. Contents of the programme

2.1 Objective
2.2 Development and use of technology
2.3 Transfer of technology
2.4 Other issues
2.5 Limitations of remediation methods

One of the objectives of the Contaminated Soil Act /2/ is to create a basis for developing and using new remediation technologies for contaminated soil and groundwater.

The overall objective of the Technology Programme is to create a basis for carrying out more efficient (in terms of both environmental impact and cost) remediation of contaminated sites, including testing and implementation of new and recent remediation technologies, both high-tech and low-tech.

	The Technology Programme funds are to be used for development and documentation of technologies which can be used under Danish conditions and for typical contaminants.
	The Technology Programme funds are to be used for projects which test the limits of what is technically possible within fields such as remediation levels, treatment and processing technologies, cost reduction, and documentation.
	The Technology Programme funds are to ensure that the results of the completed projects are made available to all interested parties, in particular to those authorities which are to assess the remediation projects.

The programme has been in force since December 1996. The present programme indicates a series of areas which should be addressed in terms of technology development during the next 2-4 years. This is to ensure that the funds available are not spent ad hoc on individual projects, but are aimed specifically at particular areas or issues.

2.1 Objective

The overall objective for the Technology Programme is to identify remediation technologies, so that in the future, it will be easier to select the optimum remediation technologies for each site in terms of cost, environmental benefits, and technical issues.

The objective is that approximately 70 per cent of funds should be spent on testing various technologies, and the remaining 30 per cent should be used for desk studies which can help promote remediation efforts or provide a better basis for understanding contamination spreading and risk assessment.

The objectives for testing various remediation technologies are as follows:

	To test, assess, and describe the most promising technologies.
	To test technologies directed at those substances which present the greatest problems in terms of the environment and health.
	To test technologies within those areas where large sums of money are used for remediation.
	To initiate approximately 10 - 20 field projects per year.
	To aim projects at practical use.
	To conduct all tests with specific aims and at a high professional level.
	To ensure all tests are validated by impartial parties.
	To extract knowledge about the advantages and limitations of the technologies during testing.
	To prepare technical reports for the technologies tested.
	To publish project reports regularly on the Internet and in the journal Ny Viden ['New Knowledge'].
	To present the results at meetings.
	To give counties the opportunity, once a year, to submit suggestions for sites for testing of technologies.
	To provide counties with an opportunity to make suggestions on a continuous basis for technologies to be tested.
	To provide county employees with opportunities to become professionally involved in the projects.
	To prepare a catalogue of all the technologies tested after five years from the launch date of the programme.
	To ensure coordination with other schemes and programmes.
	To carry out an assessment and evaluation of the programme five years after the launch date.

It is expected that an overview of the possible remediation technologies and predicted remediation levels will be available after five years from the launch date of the programme. On this basis, it will be possible to identify areas where there is a need to develop and test other technologies at laboratory level. An overview of the amount of remediated soil which cannot be freely used, but must be deposited after remediation is also expected to be available.

The objectives of the desk studies are:

	To identify remediation technologies for testing.
	To identify potential remediation technologies for various types of contamination.
	To improve the basis for risk assessment of contamination of soil and groundwater.
	To improve the available knowledge about the risks associated with various contaminants.

It is expected that an overview will be available within five years after the launch date of the programme, outlining the potential remediation technologies which exist to combat those contaminants which present the greatest problems in terms of the environment and health.

2.2 Development and use of technology

Development of specific technologies is usually carried out in stages as follows:

1. Testing in laboratories.
2. Pilot-scale testing.
3. Full-scale demonstration under natural conditions.
4. Commercial use.

Significant research efforts usually precede stage 1, laboratory testing. During the first 3+ years after the launch of the Technology Programme, the technology projects initiated have primarily fallen within stages 2 or 3.

Danish as well as foreign experience shows that considerable barriers may exist between stages 1 and 2 and again between stages 2 and 3. These barriers include optimising method use, concept development, geological heterogeneity, and sufficient remediation in relation to applicable soil-quality criteria.

The objective for the Technology Programme for 2000-2001 is primarily to help overcome these barriers for technologies which are deemed suitable for use under Danish conditions and which have typically completed the first stage. However, it is expected that some laboratory testing (stage 1) will be initiated during this period.

Development and testing of innovative remediation techniques have predominantly been carried out in the USA, and primarily by private enterprises. The American Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA) supports the development and demonstration of innovative remediation techniques through initiatives such as the SITE Programme (Superfund Innovative Technology Evaluation Programme). Moreover, various support schemes exist in the US, both under the auspices of the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Department of Defence (DOD). In Europe, Dutch and German enterprises lead the development and use of innovative remediation techniques.

The Danish technology-development projects carried out during the last three years have mainly been conducted through technology transfer from the USA.

As yet, no special requirements have been made of enterprises in Denmark or abroad to document the effectiveness of the remediation methods used. The US-EPA is considering possible ways of setting out such requirements with a view to achieving environmentally acceptable remediation.

The Danish EPA takes the view that the Technology Programme must continue to ensure purpose-directed transfers of technology, testing, and implementation in order to adapt results from e.g. the USA, the Netherlands, and Germany to Danish conditions.

2.4 Other issues

The Technology Programme also comprises other areas insofar as these areas can contribute to promoting remediation measures or if they can bring about a better basis for understanding the spread of contamination and for risk assessment.

The programme still cannot comprise development of technology for remediation of surface contamination from e.g. nitrate and pesticides.

2.5 Limitations of remediation methods

The Programme for Technology Development from 1996 /3/ contained the following description of the situation within soil remediation:

	The methods which are used on a routine basis are mainly off-site methods (remediation carried out elsewhere), whereas only a minority of the methods are in-situ (on-site remediation) methods.
	There are many methods for remediation of organic contamination. The opportunities for cleaning up inorganic contamination are more limited.
	The known techniques can to some extent be used for remediation of sandy soil types, while only a minority of the methods can be used for remediation of loamy/clay soil types and mixtures, e.g. mixtures of soil and rocks or waste.
	In-situ techniques are more difficult if the soil is inhomogeneous.
	Some of the most common soil-remediation techniques change the original soil structure.
	Many in-situ techniques have long operating times before acceptable end levels can be attained, or if the amount of unserviceable residual products is to be minimised.
	Documentation for the effectiveness of in-situ techniques is often sparse.

Therefore, for almost all in-situ and on-site techniques there is a need for controlled pilot-scale testing which aims at concept development and method optimisation, as well as a need for establishing how effectively these methods can be used to address the problems in real life. However, with regard to the biological methods, the primary need is to optimise the methods. With regard to on-site methods, such as on-site thermic treatment and other remediation methods, which all require relatively large-scale investments, the development potential is less attractive if such methods are directed solely at a relatively small domestic market.

This description still largely applies to the situation within this field. During the last three years, one of the changes is that it has become more 'common' to carry out in-situ remediation. Moreover, there is more awareness of issues such as dimensioning plants, the limitations of the methods, and especially operating conditions. These changes are partly due to the Technology Programme. It is still estimated that there remain few opportunities for remediating inorganic contamination, and that remediation of contaminated inhomogeneous clay soil presents a significant problem.