Probability mapping of contaminants [electronic resource].

Published:: Washington, D.C. : United States. Dept. of Energy, 1994.
Oak Ridge, Tenn. : Distributed by the Office of Scientific and Technical Information, U.S. Dept. of Energy.
Physical Description:: 10 pages : digital, PDF file
Additional Creators:: Sandia National Laboratories, United States. Department of Energy, and United States. Department of Energy. Office of Scientific and Technical Information

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Summary:

Exhaustive characterization of a contaminated site is a physical and practical impossibility. Descriptions of the nature, extent, and level of contamination, as well as decisions regarding proposed remediation activities, must be made in a state of uncertainty based upon limited physical sampling. The probability mapping approach illustrated in this paper appears to offer site operators a reasonable, quantitative methodology for many environmental remediation decisions and allows evaluation of the risk associated with those decisions. For example, output from this approach can be used in quantitative, cost-based decision models for evaluating possible site characterization and/or remediation plans, resulting in selection of the risk-adjusted, least-cost alternative. The methodology is completely general, and the techniques are applicable to a wide variety of environmental restoration projects. The probability-mapping approach is illustrated by application to a contaminated site at the former DOE Feed Materials Production Center near Fernald, Ohio. Soil geochemical data, collected as part of the Uranium-in-Soils Integrated Demonstration Project, have been used to construct a number of geostatistical simulations of potential contamination for parcels approximately the size of a selective remediation unit (the 3-m width of a bulldozer blade). Each such simulation accurately reflects the actual measured sample values, and reproduces the univariate statistics and spatial character of the extant data. Post-processing of a large number of these equally likely statistically similar images produces maps directly showing the probability of exceeding specified levels of contamination (potential clean-up or personnel-hazard thresholds).

Report Numbers:

E 1.99:sand--94-0857c
E 1.99: conf-940386--1
conf-940386--1
sand--94-0857c

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Note:

Published through SciTech Connect.
04/01/1994.
"sand--94-0857c"
" conf-940386--1"
"DE94008950"
"GB0103012"
Cost efficient acquisition and utilization of data in the management of hazardous waste sites,Herndon, VA (United States),23-25 Mar 1994.
Sigda, J.M.; Rautman, C.A.; Kaplan, P.G.; Istok, J.D.; McGraw, M.A.

Funding Information:

AC04-94AL85000

View MARC record | catkey: 14144297