As the bio-remediation process continued and the materials being remediated were cleaned to the specification, it was then time to replace the material. This is where the Code of Practice comes into play.
It
is now possible to take the material that you previously dug out (because it was contaminated and effectively a waste) and place the clean (processed) material back in the void created. As the Code of Practice is in place on this site, this clean and suitable material is no longer classified as waste and becomes a useable resource. Previously, this would not have been possible without a permit, an exemption or similar. Now under the Code of Practice there is no issue. Thus, the cleaned material is backfilled into the void where it came from and not one lorry load of the soil has been moved off site or land filled.
This Code of Practice has huge implications for the construction and environmental industries, as well as to the environment. In the case above Soil and Water Remediation reduced the need for 100 lorry movements from an area where the roads are
already at bursting point. There was no need to bring in clean, quarried material from an unsustainable source to replace the void created, as might have been the case in the past, given the treated material was re-used. The only material needed to be imported was some top soil to replace the volume lost to the underground storage tanks.
While this project was relatively small and self contained, it is possible to run multiple sites and create one treatment site at a separate location where space is available. These schemes are known as Clusters. Thus, it could be that one contractor has multiple sites in an area but there is not enough space on any one site to carry out waste processing, but a separate, remote site can be found where waste from all sites can be treated. This model may be advantageous in areas where there are numerous sites close together, reducing overall lorry mileages as a consequence.
Overall, it can be seen that the Code of Practice is a positive step forward in terms of the regulatory process being simplified. It is also a positive step forward for the environment with a re-use of materials that would have been previously land filled ,a reduction in the use
of unsustainable sources of soil, stone, sand etc and the consequent reduction in lorry movements and related mileages moving these materials round our roads.
For further details on the scheme including the criteria for the Qualified Person please see the CL:AIRE web site. Brian Graham is Director of Soil and Water Remediation and is a Qualified Person under the Code of Practice scheme.
ENVIRONMENT INDUSTRY MAGAZINE |109|
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152