What is Groundwater Plume?
A plume describes a body of dissolved chemicals that are traveling with the natural flow of groundwater. Plumes of contamination refer to this process, where the dissolved chemicals are hazardous to human health and/or ecological receptors. Generally, groundwater plumes flow from high to low groundwater levels, and preferentially migrate through higher permeability pathways within the subsurface.
Understanding plume movement is critical for protecting property value and staying compliant with regulations.
Plume Remediation
Remediation of an entire plume of contamination is equivalent to cleaning all the groundwater contamination associated with that plume. While some strategies, such as Permeable Reactive Barriers (PRBs), focus on containing or intercepting a plume at a single point, plume remediation is an area-wide treatment approach that addresses contamination throughout the groundwater system.
Because contaminant concentrations vary within a plume, treatment is often customized:
- High-concentration areas may require aggressive technologies
- Low-concentration areas may be managed with passive or natural attenuation methods
This approach can achieve both cost-efficiency and effective cleanup results.
The Role of a CSM in Groundwater Plume Remediation
A robust Conceptual Site Model (CSM) is essential to a plume-wide remediation plan. A CSM will allow the design team to foresee challenges with remediation and enables the plan to be optimized for cost efficiency. A CSM is typically an outcome of a Phase Two Environmental Site Assessment (ESA), which should be carried out prior to investing in any remediation work.
Need an Environmental Site Assessment – or want and existing one reviewed?
AEL can help confirm you have the right data before committing resources.
Is Plume Remediation a Good Fit for Your Site?
Remediating an entire plume of groundwater contamination generally provides a faster return on investment, although it may cost more than a slower or minimalistic remedial strategy, but if often delivers:
- Faster return on investment by addressing all contamination at once
- Shorter project timelines for cleanup and redevelopment
- Regulatory and financial confidence when seeking approvals or financing
Many different technologies may be employed for plume remediation, depending on the type of contamination, its concentration magnitude and distribution, rate of attenuation, size/location, and other site constraints. When deciding how to treat a contaminated property, Client-specific factors such as timeline, desired outcome, and budget must be at the forefront of decision making.
To determine how to best treat the contamination at your property, ask AEL about a Remedial Action Plan (RAP)
Ready to take the next step towards remediating your property?
We invite you to discuss your site-specific goals and situation with our team of experts.