Mercury Recovery, Case Study Example

Risk and Impurities

The water on the ground, soil and residues are polluted with the substance called mercury. The risk evaluation for human health created a significant probable risk that are directly exposed to mercury contaminated ground water and earth that is again directly exposed to inhabitants. Likewise, the baseline for ecologic risk evaluation identified risks that are unacceptable for receptors associated with ecology and residues of mercury associated with unnamed branch.

Cleaning Progress

The state department of New York environmental conservation was on the lead role for acting via December 1999 after the request from EFP for having a lead role. Likewise, immediate risks were identified by the consent of Mercury Refining Company and NYSDEC. Moreover, there are also risks associated with removing approx. 2100 cy of soil that is contaminated with mercury along with 300 cy of soil contaminated by PCB. In the year 1994, construction for a new furnace building was completed by Mercury Refining and it was developed by using state of the art equipment that manages air pollution (Podolský, F., Ettler, V., Šebek, O., Ježek, J., Mihaljevi?, M., K?íbek, B., & … Nyambe, I ,2015). Similarly, in the year 2008, a remediation investigation was along with the feasibility study was conducted and an ‘ROD’ Record of Decision. Likewise, the remediation for the site instructed the subtraction of surface that is mercury contaminated along with the soil located on the site. The contamination of water on the ground and soil via a process called as solidification and stabilization (ISS). Moreover, the subtraction is carried out for the sediment that is contaminated from the tributary that leads to the Patroon Creek that travels from the site.

In September 2009, an administrative agreement was signed by EPA along with seven primary potential responsible parties (PRPs) for deploying a remediation design of the ROD. Moreover, an order categorized as unilateral was issued to other primary PRP’s that wants participation and cooperation along with the seven PRP’s for deploying the design. Apparently, in September 2012, a remediation action along with recovering cost was inserted by the court in United States of the Northern District i.e. New York. Likewise, the requirements incorporate five out of nine primary parties that executes on the remediation action on the site and respond to the costs along with the site property owner who will manage the limitation on the site. Furthermore, the requirements of the remaining parties along with the nineteen departments, agencies and forty two small parties for making payments falling in escrow account for funding the remediation actions on the site. Also, there were total six settlements from 2009 to 2013 processed by EPA and they were in total $4,083,149 from three hundred and fourteen. In addition, in the year 2003, EPA initiated a settlement agreement with Mercury Refining Company and the owner Leo Cohen, as they paid the settlement charges (Zawadzki, K., Soko?owska, K., Samecka-Cymerman, A., Kolon, K., Dubi?ska, A., & Kempers, A. J. 2014).

All the primary and secondary parties are paying the total cost of remediation that is approximately $9.3 million along with the reimbursement of previous EPA responses. The remedy design was successfully accomplished in September 2013 (Zawadzki, K., Soko?owska, K., Samecka-Cymerman, A., Kolon, K., Dubi?ska, A., & Kempers, A. J. 2014). Likewise, a pilot test will be carried out for ensuring reproductive laboratory results. Consequently, after the tests, the ISS construction will be initiated.

Work Cited

Podolský, F., Ettler, V., Šebek, O., Ježek, J., Mihaljevi?, M., K?íbek, B., & … Nyambe, I. (2015). Mercury in soil profiles from metal mining and smelting areas in Namibia and Zambia: distribution and potential sources. Journal Of Soils & Sediments: Protection, Risk Assessment, & Remediation, 15(3), 648-658. doi:10.1007/s11368-014-1035-9

Zawadzki, K., Soko?owska, K., Samecka-Cymerman, A., Kolon, K., Dubi?ska, A., & Kempers, A. J. (2014). Mercury in Pleurozium schreberi and Polytrichum commune from areas with various levels of Hg pollution–an accumulation and desorption experiment with microscopic observations. Ecotoxicology And Environmental Safety, 10836-41. doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2014.06.013