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Border 2012Waste Policy Forum

Contaminated Sites

Photo of Metales y Derivados remediation site
Border Cleanups

First Border 2012 Binational Site Stabilization Action -- Metales y Derivados site

Nacozari, Mexico, Mine Tailings (PDF) (16 pp, 3.6M, About PDF)

Google Earth Public Access to Land Revitalization Sites (PDF) (1 pp, 22K)

Accidents, spills, leaks, and improper disposal of solid waste and hazardous waste can result in the contamination of land, water (groundwater and surface water), and air (indoor and outdoor). Common categories of contaminants include: industrial solvents, petroleum products, metals, pesticides, biological, and radiological materials. These contaminated sites can threaten human health as well as the environment.

View links and publications on remediation and cleanup of contaminated sites by topic.

Abandoned Mine Lands

Abandoned Mine Lands
US EPA. The purpose of this Web page is to identify EPA's resources related to the range of environmental risks and challenges from AMLs as well as risk management approaches.

Brownfields & Land Revitaliztion

Brownfields and Land Revitalization
US EPA. Brownfields are real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. Cleaning up and reinvesting in these properties takes development pressures off of undeveloped, open land, and both improves and protects the environment. On this site, you can find information about US EPA's Brownfields Program including the Brownfields Law, US EPA Brownfields Grants, technical tools and resources as well as information on brownfields projects across the county.

Brownfields and Land Revitalization International Partnerships
US EPA. Learn about Brownfields international partnerships.

The Brownfields and Land Revitalization Technology Support Center
US EPA, Argonne National Laboratory, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. A cooperative effort to provide technical support to federal, state, local, and tribal officials for questions related to the use of innovative technologies and strategies for site assessment and cleanup.

Region 9 Brownfields
US EPA. Region 9's Brownfields Program works to clean up and redevelop potentially contaminated lands in the Pacific Southwest region, making it easier for such lands to become vital, functioning parts of their communities.

Region 9 Brownfields Grants Funding and Assistance
US EPA. Provides information on Brownfields Assessment, Cleanup, and Revolving Loan Fund pilots/Grants in Region 9.

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Cleanups and Remediation

EPA Superfund
US EPA. Superfund is the U.S. federal government's program to clean up the U.S.'s uncontrolled hazardous waste sites. This Web site provides topical information for the general public and for those involved in the Superfund program. On this site, you'll find information about Superfund sites in your area, the health effects of common contaminants, cleanup efforts, and how you can become involved in cleanup activities in your community.

EPA Cleanup Process
US EPA. Provides information on the Superfund cleanup process.

EPA: Cleaning up our Land, Water, and Air
US EPA. Learn about cleanups in your area, what you can do to help with cleanups, technologies used to clean up sites or specific types of contaminants, U.S. cleanup laws, statutes, regulations and standards, cleanup enforcement, cleanup grants and funding and more.

EPA Site Assessment
US EPA. Learn about the EPA site assessment process.

CLU-IN Remediation Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
US EPA. Provides technical information, case studies, best practices, and webinars on a variety of remediation topics.

Corrective Action
US EPA. Accidents at facilities that house hazardous wastes release pollutants into soil, groundwater, surface water, and air. To combat those effects, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Corrective Action Program, run by EPA and 43 authorized states and territories, works with responsible facilities to investigate and clean up hazardous releases. This Web site provides information on this program.

RCRA Reuse & Brownfields Prevention Initiative
US EPA. The RCRA Brownfields Prevention Initiative was established by EPA to encourage the reuse of potential RCRA Brownfields so that the land better serves the needs of the community either through more productive commercial or residential development or as greenspace.
This page provides descriptions, official documents and links for a variety of topics related to Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Brownfield topics. It also identifies some of the initiatives as well as resources and recent RCRA guidance and reforms that may be applicable at potential RCRA Brownfields facilities.

Underground Storage Tanks
US EPA. About 625,000 underground storage tanks (USTs) in the U.S. store petroleum or hazardous ubstances that can harm the environment and human health if the USTs release their stored contents. This link will connect you with information sources that describe the development of UST regulations and their effectiveness today in protecting us and our environment from leaking USTs.

The Remediation Technologies Screening Matrix Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Federal Remediation Technologies Roundtable. The remediation technologies screening matrix is a user-friendly tool to screen for technologies for a remediation project. The matrix allows you to screen through 64 in situ and ex situ technologies for either soil or groundwater remediation. Variables used in screening include contaminants, development status, overall cost, and cleanup time. In-depth information on each technology is also available, including direct links to over 209 cost and performance reports written by members of the Federal Remediation Technologies Roundtable.

Training

The Hazardous Waste Clean-Up Information (CLU-IN) Web Site Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
US EPA. Provides information about innovative treatment and site characterization technologies. It describes programs, organizations, publications, and other tools for federal and state personnel, consulting engineers, technology developers and vendors, remediation contractors, researchers, community groups, and individual citizens.

CLU-IN's Live Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
US EPA. CLU-IN's ongoing series of Internet Seminars are free, web-based slide presentations with a companion audio portion. Provided are two options for accessing the audio portion of the seminar: by phone line or streaming audio simulcast.

Technology Innovation Program Training Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
US EPA. Learn about upcoming internet seminars, the training exchange, upcoming courses and conferences and upcoming and past conference webcasts.

RCRA Corrective Action Training: Strategies for Meeting the 2020 Vision
US EPA. The mission of this course is to develop and enhance the skills of qualified personnel who will implement corrective actions for their sites by the year 2020 that are protective of human health and the environment while encouraging revitalization. This training course stresses practical approaches that support progress while achieving on-going protection of human health and the environment and long-term environmental stewardship.

Interstate Technology & Regulatory Council Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Interstate Technology & Regulatory Council Provides internet-based training and classroom training.

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Publications

CLU-IN Publications on Remediation, Characterization and Monitoring, Initiatives and Partnerships, Brownfields Issues Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
US EPA. Browse or search our 665 documents, videos, internet seminars, and conference webcasts.

Cleanup Publications
US EPA. Links to resources and publications related to cleanups.

Guidance Documents Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Interstate Technology & Regulatory Council Provides guidance documents related to cleanups.

Sampling, Characterization, and Monitoring

CLU-IN Characterization and Monitoring Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
US EPA. View technology tools, educational, policy and guidance materials on brownfields, systematic planning, dynamic work plans using field analytical methods, and statistics. Also view information on ecological land reuse, green remediation, mining sites, nanotechnology, sediments vapor intrusion, wood treatment sites.

Triad Resource Center Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
The Triad is an innovative approach to decision-making for hazardous waste site characterization and remediation. The Triad approach proactively exploits new characterization and treatment tools, using work strategies developed by innovative and successful site professionals. The Triad Resource Center provides the information hazardous waste site managers and cleanup practitioners need to implement the Triad effectively.

Guidance Documents Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Interstate Technology & Regulatory Council Provides guidance materials on accelerated site characterization, sampling, characterization and monitoring, diffusion/passive samplers and more.

State Programs

Arizona

ADEQ Cleanups Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. Learn about Arizona's contaminated soil and groundwater cleanups.

ADEQ Remediation and Deur Tracking System Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. ADEQ maintains a repository listing sites remediated under programs administered by the department. Site specific information can be obtained for a particular recorded DEUR or voluntary environmental mitigation use restriction (VEMUR). This database is searchable by place name, county, city, zip code and type.

ADEQ Site Assessment Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. Learn about risk-based approaches to cleanups.

Arizona Department of Health Services Deterministic Risk Assessment Guidance (PDF) Exiting EPA (disclaimer) (59 pp, 105K)
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality

ADEQ: GIS eMaps Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. View an Arizona map of the locations of brownfields. (Interactive GIS eMaps)

California

CIWMB: Solid Waste Disposal Site and Co-disposal Site Cleanup Program Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
California Integrated Waste Management Board

DTSC's Hazardous Waste and Substances Site List - Site Cleanup Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
California Department of Toxic Substances Control Provides background on the DTSC Site Mitigation and Brownfields Reuse Program including information that is required to be included in DTSC's component of the Cortese List.

California Department of Toxic Substances Control: Brownfields Reuse Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) has integrated existing programs and developed a number of new tools to facilitate reuse of brownfields properties. This website provides information on recent workshops, targeted site investigations, contact list, general information, cleanup guidance, site databases, and the DTSC Brownfield programs.

State Water Resources Control Board Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
California Environmental Protection Agency

California Center for Land Recycling Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
California Center for Land Recycling Provides training, technical assistance, and small grants for California communities.

New Mexico

New Mexico Environmental Department - Waste Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
New Mexico Environmental Department

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Texas

TCEQ Brownfields Site Assessment Program Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Learn about Texas's Brownfields Site Assessments Program.

TCEQ Voluntary Cleanup Program Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Learn about Texas's Voluntary Cleanup Program.

TCEQ's Remediation: Cleaning Up Contaminated Sites Exiting EPA (disclaimer)
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Learn about TECQ's State and federal remediation and voluntary programs.

Recursos Españoles

EPA Superfund en Español
US EPA. Superfund es el programa del gobierno federal el cual se encarga de limpiar, mejorar o restaurar los sitios que contienen desperdicios peligrosos y los cuales están sin control. Nosotros estamos comprometidos a asegurar que los sitios que continúan en la lista de prioridades nacional y contienen desperdicios peligrosos sean limpiados, mejorados o restaurados a niveles que protejan al medio ambiente y la salud de todos los americanos.
Está página Web provee información actualizada para el público en general y para aquellos que están involucrados en el Programa de Superfund. En esta página, usted encontrará información referente a los sitios de Superfund en su comunidad, los efectos a la salud causados por contaminantes encontrados en el sitio, esfuerzos para la restauración del sitio, y como usted puede involucrarse en las actividades de limpieza, mejora o restauración en su comunidad.

Contact the Workgroup Co-chairs

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