The Michael the Cleaner site in Sarasota, Florida was listed by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection as a hazardous site because it was polluted by chemicals used in dry cleaning. These chemicals got into the soil and groundwater, both on and off the site.
Laundry facilities use a variety of chemicals that end up in the environment when they dispose of their wastewater. When these chemicals reach groundwater, they reduce the oxygen levels. This is harmful to nearby wells and, in this case, a body of water that was less than a quarter mile away.
Gutteridge Haskins & Davey (GHD) checked the quality of the groundwater and soil by taking samples from monitoring wells. Tests showed that the pollution came from the old dry cleaners. They found five harmful chemicals, one of which could cause cancer. GHD suggested a plan to clean up the site. It included removing some of the polluted soil with natural processes to clean the groundwater. They also wanted to monitor the area to make sure it was improving. They planned to inject bacteria into the wells to clean up the polluted water and soil. They figured out how much bacteria and nutrients they needed based on the condition of the groundwater and soil. They also needed to decide how deep to inject the bacteria and how to get it into the wells.
Nicole Blanchard, Darius Far, Alexander Rodriquez, Rayana Watford
Sean Martin, Ph.D., PE, FRSE and Jeffrey Farner, Ph.D.
Gutteridge Haskins & Davey (GHD); Jenna Martin, P.E.
Spring