Ohio River Redevelopment: Role for Sustainable Remediation?

Waterfront plans across the Ohio River region are plentiful, ranging from hike and bike trails stretching across Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati’s West Side to billion-dollar developments for new residents, businesses, and retailers.

US Census statistics show faster population growth in American cities than its suburbs, good news for Cincinnati projects and those directly across the river from Downtown in Northern Kentucky. Studies also show that younger generations seek walkable communities, connected to the amenities and entertainment they crave.  Grassroots organizers, city planners, and developers hope the strengthening U.S. economy will boost financing, as competition for state and federal grants becomes stiffer.

Riverfronts are becoming popular development sites, as cities across the nation try to clean them up, and communities want to capitalize on the trend. Cincinnati is among the top 10 busiest inland ports in the country, with more than 13 million tons of freight traffic per year.  And as the water quality in the Ohio River improves, so do the tools to build and redevelop on floodplains safely for natural habitats and people.

Challenges lie mainly in funding.  Developers of two billon-dollar projects in Northern Kentucky communities of Dayton and Newport expressed hope that 2010 would be their year, echoing that optimism every year since.  But six years after the state enacted a tax incentive to jump-start the projects, Ovation in Newport and Manhattan Harbour in Dayton remain unbuilt. But with the worst of the recession behind them, they are hoping the projects will be back on track for 2013.

Contamination issues are dragging out plans at the brownfield development MetroWest in Lower Price Hill, rated the top priority of 17 projects funded by the Clean Ohio Council in 2007, earning $3 million for clean up. Environmental remediation usually takes 3 to 5 years for a site that size, but it’s been six so far.  Diana Christy of Cincinnati’s Office of Environmental Quality says that cleanup will be more widespread and extensive than anticipated. "We had to get more money."

Read the complete article at Cincinnati.com, by Carrie Blackmore Smith, March 12, 2013.

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS: The 29th Annual International Conference on Soils, Sediments, Water, and Energy (Amherst, MA)

Are you searching for a venue to share your sustainable remediation story?  Well today is your lucky day:

Mike Miller (CDM Smith) is organizing a Sustainable Remediation session at the 29th Annual International Conference on Soils, Sediments, Water and Energy at the University of Massachusettes, Amherst, MA, held October 21-24, 2013. Abstracts for this session (only) will be accepted through May 2013 (despite the "official" February 8, 2013 deadline posted on the website). Abstract requirements are available here.

Contact Mike Miller directly, with your abstracts and inquires.

Model Site for Sustainable Sediment Remediation?

Among most polluted in US, NYC area awaits cleanup
Verena Dobnik, Associated Press

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency declared Newtown Creek a Superfund site in 2010.  

The creek's bottom is lined with a 15-foot-thick layer of petroleum-based pollutants that scientists have dubbed "black mayonnaise." The ooze penetrated the shoreline and now sits on top of the water table dozens of feet under Brooklyn's gentrifying Greenpoint neighborhood. More than 300,000 people still live within a mile of the creek.

Scientists are using sonar to probe the muck in the 3.5-mile waterway in hopes of determining the best way to conduct the cleanup, which will be financed by six entities that inherited the pollution: Exxon Mobil, Texaco Inc., the Phelps Dodge Refining Corp., BP Products North America Inc., National Grid NY, and the city of New York.

One method used at other Superfund sites is to dredge the sediment from barges carrying cranes with scoopers, then capping the bottom to block any residue of oil, pesticides, chemicals, and other pollutants.

Read the complete article here.

Greenwashing or Common Sense?

In the first of four collaborative webinars between the Air & Waste Management Association (A&WMA) and the Sustainable Remediation Forum (SURF), learn how to apply the triple bottom line to remediation.

This webinar will cover:

• SURF – its origin, mission, and how it functions through interdisciplinary meetings
• Sustainable Remediation (SR) – what is it and how is it different from green remediation
• State of the Practice – international, U.S., SURF organizations, and student chapters
• Metrics and Tools –how these are used in SR
• Case Studies – how is sustainable remediation applied to real world sites

The webinar is scheduled for January 31, 2013, at 10:30 am PST.

Click here to register.

SURF 21 - December 12-13, 2012 - Sustainable Remediation Around the World

Join us for SURF 21, December 12-13, 2012.  Representatives from sustainable remediation organizations throughout the world will travel to Washington, DC to meet at the National Academy of Sciences Building, 2101 Constitution Avenue, N.W.  Our invited speakers will discuss how their organizations are structured and how each functions and interacts with government agencies, industries, and the public.  We anticipate the sharing of regulatory policy drivers/roadblocks, lessons learned, key documents and tools, and illustrative case studies.  The information and opinions shared at this meeting will be compiled into a “Global Perspectives on Sustainable Remediation” White Paper, to be published in early 2013.

Confirmed international speakers include:

• Toshihito Kondo, Fujita Corporation, Japan
• Sander Eskes, AECOM, Brazil
• Jonathan Smith, Shell UK
• Stella Karnis, CN, Canada
• Mengfang Chen, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences
• Lucy Wiltshire, Honeywell UK/NICOLE
• Paul Nathanail, University of Nottingham/ISO

Invited:

• U.S. EPA
• SURF Australia
• Several special keynote speakers

Sponsorship Opportunities

To help SURF keep its registration fees low and benefit from the unique exposure this meeting will provide, please consider sponsoring SURF 21.  Sponsorships are customizable to fit your organization’s needs.  Suggested packages include:

• Platinum – $2500 – Sponsors will receive acknowledgment on the SURF website, in pre- and post-meeting email announcements, on-stage recognition by the meeting facilitator, and signage at the registration desk and breakfast/lunch/refreshment tables.
• Gold – $1500 – Sponsors will receive acknowledgment in pre- and post-meeting email announcements, on-stage recognition by the meeting facilitator, and signage at the registration desk and breakfast/refreshment tables.
• Silver – $1000 – Sponsors will receive acknowledgment in pre- and post-meeting email announcements, on-stage recognition by the meeting facilitator, and signage at the registration desk.

Please reply to this email or contact the SURF Treasurer no later than October 5, 2012 to become a SURF 21 sponsor.

Meeting registration will open in October.  Seating will be limited, so please stay tuned to the SURF website for details.