Remediation; An overview
The U.SD. government began committing the nation legally and financially in the last decade to the ultimate remediation of virtually all of the hazardous wastes that were produced in the past and remain to threaten human health and the environment, all that continue to be generated, and all that will be created in the future. Whether engendered by acts of God or human industry, the laws and regulations mandate, hazardous wastes and the threats they pose will be removed or rendered harmless. As mobilization for tackling the monumental task implied by those commitments has progressed, key concepts have changed in meaning. The remedy of remediation once literally meant burying our hazardous waste problems in landfills, for example, a solution now officially defined as the least desirable-although still commonly chosen - course of action. The process of identifying hazardous substances and determining in what quantities they constitute health and environmental hazards continues apace. As measurement technologies become increasingly precise and capable to detecting more 9s to the right of the decimal point, acceptable levels of emissions into the air and concentrations in the ground or water are reduced. This article is intended as a sketch of where the national commitment of remediation currently stands, with examples of implications for both generators of hazardous wastes and those who have entered-or seek to enter-the rapidly growing business of remediation.
- OSTI ID:
- 5640905
- Journal Information:
- Hazmat World; (United States), Vol. 1:2; ISSN 0898-5685
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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