SUMMARY OF THE REMEDIATION TECHNOLOGIES
DEVELOPMENT FORUM
PERMEABLE REACTIVE BARRIERS ACTION TEAM STEERING COMMITTEE
CONFERENCE CALL

11:00 a.m.-Noon
July 15, 1997

On July 17, 1997, members of the Permeable Reactive Barriers Action Team Steering Committee of the Remediation Technologies Development Forum (RTDF) met in a conference call. The following members were present:

Dale Schultz (Co-chair)
Rich Steimle
Scott Warner

Also present were Diane Dopkin of Environmental Management Support, Inc., and Colin Devonshire of Eastern Research Group, Inc.

DNAPL CONSORTIUM PROPOSAL

Rich Steimle stated that while the permeable reactive barriers (PRB) proposal to the DNAPL Consortium was strong, the Air Force is looking for a technology that will attack DNAPL plumes. Because reactive walls are a more passive approach, a PRB may not be the most suitable technology in this case. Steimle said the consortium will meet at the end of the month and will likely debate this issue then. The group agreed that the PRB proposal itself illustrates the promise of this technology, and the Action Team should search for other, more appropriate funding sources.

AGENDA FOR SEPTEMBER MEETING

Dale Schultz stated that a tentative list of speakers has been arranged for the Permeable Reactive Barriers Action Team Meeting, scheduled for September 18 to 19 in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The speakers fall under four topic categories. The tentative list of speakers includes:

• Laboratory Studies

• Rob Bowman (and/or one of his students), University of New Mexico: Zeolites as an alternative reaction medium

• Tim Sivavec, General Electric: DNAPL treatment with iron

• Lyuan Liang, Oak Ridge National Laboratory: Placement technologies (tentatively scheduled within the Laboratory Studies category)

• Placement Technologies

• Rich Landis, DuPont: Iron jetting and jet grouting agents

• Field Updates

• Bob Puls, EPA/NRMRL: U.S. Coast Guard Support Center study in Elizabeth City,
  North Carolina

• John Vogan, ETI: Analysis of cores from PRBs

• Peter McMahon, USGS: Denver Federal Center

• Arun Gavaskar, Battelle: Moffett Federal Airfield

• Modeling

• Alan Rabideau: Geochemical modeling

According to Schultz, Liang has also recommended Jim Paulson as a speaker, though it is not clear which category he would fall under. Schultz said there may be slots for two or three more speakers. Scott Warner suggested that the Steering Committee find a speaker to provide an overview of the history and future of PRB technology in order to tie together the specific topics to be addressed during the meeting. Schultz said this was an excellent idea, and suggested that Bob Gillham may be a good person to provide perspective with a broader "keynote" address. Warner suggested that the keynote speaker give a brief wrap-up at the end of the meeting as well.

The group agreed that abstracts of the meeting presentations should be distributed before the meeting, and some form of meeting summary or report should be posted on the Action Team Homepage after the meeting for those not able to attend.

Warner said that the choice of an alternative medium (zeolites) as a topic for the meeting was incongruous given that the Action Team has focused exclusively on iron media up to this point. If alternative media are to be addressed, Warner said the Steering Committee might improve the meeting by including two or three presentations under an Alternative Media category.

Schultz informed the group that plans for the site visit to Elizabeth City, scheduled for September 19, are proceeding well, and that the Coast Guard is enthusiastic. The Action Team should have a chance to observe sampling during the visit.

Steimle requested 10 minutes during the meeting to discuss the Action Team's Homepage and mechanisms for submitting information to it. Schultz said there will be time set aside for shorter discussions and announcements.

OTHER MEETINGS OF INTEREST

Steimle informed the group that at the end of July the Groundwater Remediation Technology and Analysis Center (GWTRAC) will sponsor a meeting in Philadelphia. This meeting will include a presentation on "Advances in Innovative Groundwater Remediation," by Dr. James Barker. Warner commented that members of the Action Team should be notified about several other upcoming meetings relative to PRB technology.

FUTURE GOALS OF THE STEERING COMMITTEE

Steimle commented that the Steering Committee should define a greater role for the Action Team. He said that while the Steering Committee has reviewed the Interstate Technology and Regulatory Cooperation (ITRC) Work Group PRB document and is preparing its own document, the group should decide on further actions to improve research and demonstration of PRB technology. He suggested that the Steering Committee formalize its PRB document, sign it, and distribute it to relevant agencies (e.g., the Department of Energy, the Air Force Center for Environmental Excellence) under the auspices of the RTDF. Steimle felt that distribution of an RTDF-approved document might help persuade some of these agencies to address PRB technology and the RTDF Action Team. Steimle noted that PRB has become one of the "hot" remediation technologies recently. Schultz agreed with Steimle's suggestion, and said that the Steering Committee need not wait until the September meeting to act on this idea. He asked Steimle to compile a list of agencies and funding sources that should receive the document. Schultz said that he and Puls could draft a cover letter for the document and distribute it for comment by the Steering Committee before finalizing the package.

The next conference call is scheduled for August 19. Schultz requested that reminder notices be sent at least one week ahead of time to compensate for members' summer schedules.