The DOE Vadose Zone Science and Technology Roadmap: A National Program to Address Characeterization, Monitoring and Simulation of Subsurface Contaminant Fate and Transport
The vadose zone comprises the region lying between the earth’s surface and the top of the regional seasonal aquifer. Until recently contamination in the vadose zone was believed to remain relatively immobile. Thus, little attention was paid to understanding the nature of the vadose zone or the potential pathways for contaminants to migrate through it to the water table or other accessible environments. However, recent discoveries of contaminants migrating considerable distances through the vadose zone at several Department of Energy (DOE) sites have changed many assumptions both about the nature and function of the vadose zone and the importance we place on understanding this region. As a result of several vadose zone surprises, DOE Environmental Management (EM) tasked the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) to lead the development of a vadose zone science and technology roadmap. The roadmap is focused on identifying research spanning the next 25 years necessary to be able to better predict the fate and transport of contaminants in the vadose zone. This in turn will provide the basis for reducing scientific uncertainty in environmental remediation and, especially, vadose zone related long-term stewardship decisions across the DOE complex. Vadose zone issues are now recognized as a national problem affecting other federal agencies as well as state and municipal sites with similar problems. Over the next few decades, dramatic and fundamental advances in computing, communication, electronics and micro-engineered systems will transform our understanding of many aspects of the scientific and technical challenges we face today. The roadmap will serve to develop a common perspective on possible future science and technology needs in an effort to help make better R&D investment decisions.
- Research Organization:
- Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC07-99ID-13727
- OSTI ID:
- 910881
- Report Number(s):
- INEEL/CON-01-00103; TRN: US200802%%258
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Waste Management 2001,Tucson, AZ,02/26/2001,03/01/2001
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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