On June 11, EPA released two long-awaited guidance documents on addressing the potential for vapor intrusion at contaminated sites. Vapor intrusion is the potential for vapors from groundwater contamination to enter occupied buildings. One guidance document, EPA’s “Technical Guide for Assessing and Mitigating the Vapor Intrusion Pathway from Subsurface Vapor Sources,” applies to all sites being investigated under cleanup programs such as Superfund, RCRA corrective action, and state-led Superfund sites. It applies to contaminants other than petroleum, to mixed petroleum and other contaminant sites, and to petroleum contamination sites other than underground storage tanks (USTs). It can be found here…. Read more
Tag: petroleum vapor intrusion
EPA to Issue Guidance on Petroleum Vapor Intrusion
The EPA has announced that it will issue guidance addressing petroleum vapor intrusion by late 2012. According to the EPA, petroleum contaminants biodegrade into non-toxic products like carbon dioxide and water through natural microbial activity as they near the surface, thereby reducing the risk of vapor intrusion from petroleum sources. The final guidance is expected to take into account the biodegradation of petroleum compounds, and to treat petroleum contamination less strictly than other sources of contamination where vapor intrusion is more likely. In an EPA released information paper dated March, 2012, the EPA stated “by quickly identifying cases where biodegradation… Read more