Buried Drum Removal & Disposal Project
The project involved a large-scale removal and disposal of buried drums at a former industrial site located in central Michigan. The scope of work required the characterization, removal, and disposal of nearly 7,000 buried drums. The project managers chose to screen the majority of the drums for a variety of waste compatibility parameters (including Waste Characterization and Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedures (TCLP) to determine disposal options. In addition, the analysis of verification soil samples was required by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to document remaining levels of contamination at the excavation sites. Ambient air samples were also required for volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds throughout the course of the excavations to monitor air quality for nearby residential property owners. The results of the individual analyses were available for daily review by the project staff. The results were tabulated on a daily basis to direct removal activities for the next day. By project end, more than 4,000 soil and ambient air samples were analyzed by the mobile laboratories. In evaluating the cost effectiveness of utilizing a fleet of mobile laboratories for this project, let’s examine the most obvious values first, i.e., cost per sample. For simplicity, we well assume 4,000 samples were analyzed. The project required a maximum turnaround time of twenty-four hours for each sample because of the need for real time data for field decisions.
- Mobile laboratory costs for this project totaled approximately $263,000.
- Fixed laboratory fees for this project, assuming 4,000 samples analyzed for waste characterization/TCLP analysis and organic and inorganic analyses with a standard turnaround, would have cost this project $2,400,000 (4,000 samples x $600.00/sample). A 25-hour turnaround from a fixed laboratory would have increased the overall analytical costs to nearly $4,800,000!
The cost difference between these two processes represented a 90% to 95% savings to the client in analytical fees alone. The field activities for this project were completed in four months representing a significant savings in professional fees incurred for the site project management. In addition, each of the 4,000 samples collected and analyzed were relevant to the project completion.