U S Environmental Protection Agency

Superfund Remedy Report Fourteenth Edition U S Environmental Protection Agency

Publisher Marketing: The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) prepared the Superfund Remedy Report (SRR) 14th Edition to provide information and analyses on remedies selected to address contamination at Superfund sites. The EPA is particularly interested in documenting and disseminating information on innovative treatment technologies that advance its mission of protecting human health and the environment at contaminated sites. This report is the latest in a series, prepared since 1991, on Superfund remedy selection. The SRR 14th Edition focuses on the analysis of Superfund remedial actions from fiscal years (FY) 2009 to 2011. The report includes remedies selected in 459 decision documents signed in this three-year period. These documents include 361 Records of Decision (RODs) and ROD amendments, and 98 Explanations of Significant Differences (ESDs). Only ESDs that included changes to remedy components were included in this analysis. The SRR compiles data on overall remedy selection and on remedies for source materials (such as soil and sediments), groundwater and air related to vapor intrusion. The report also analyzes characteristics of sites under investigation that do not yet have a decision document. In the most recent period (FY 2009 to 2011), about 40 percent of all decision documents addressed only sources, 20 percent addressed only contaminated groundwater, and 25 percent addressed both. The remainder included other remedies, such as mitigation of vapor intrusion or specified no action/no further action. Treatment, on-site containment, and off- site disposal of contaminated source media and groundwater were selected at nearly the same rate as in the previous timeframe evaluated (FY 2005 to 2008). Overall, remedies included a mix of approaches, primarily treatment; on-site containment; off-site disposal; monitored natural attenuation (MNA) or recovery (MNR); and institutional controls (ICs). Decision documents selecting only ICs were found to be for sites that had previous remedial or removal actions.