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Soil Background and Risk Assessment

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1 Introduction
1 Introduction
1.1 Audience
1.2 Purpose
1.3 Use of Background in the Risk Assessment Process
1.4 Limitations
2 Soil Background Definition 
2 Soil Background Definition
2.1 Natural Soil Background
2.2 Anthropogenic Ambient Soil Background
2.3 Additional Background Definitions
3 Establishing Soil Background
3 Establishing Soil Background
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Conducting a Soil Background Study
3.3 Choosing an Area for a Soil Background Study
3.4 Sampling
3.5 Laboratory Analysis
3.6 Using an Existing Soil Background Study
3.7 Background Dataset Analysis
3.8 Establishing Default or Site-Specific Soil Background
3.9 Extracting Site-Specific Background Dataset from an On-site Dataset
4 Using Soil Background in Risk Assessment
4 Using Soil Background in Risk Assessment
4.1 Representative Site Concentration to Compare to a BTV
4.2 Using Default Background
4.3 Using Site-Specific Background
4.4 Use of Background for Remedial Goals
4.5 Additional Considerations
5 Geochemical Evaluations
5 Geochemical Evaluations
5.1 Geochemistry Is Not Statistics
5.2 Uses of Geochemical Evaluations
5.3 General Methodology
5.4 Nondetects
5.5 Key Geochemical Processes
5.6 Extracting Background Data from Existing Data
6 Using Geochemical Evaluations in Risk Assessment
6 Using Geochemical Evaluations in Risk Assessment
6.1 Using Geochemical Evaluations During COPC Selection
6.2 Using Geochemical Evaluations During Risk Characterization
6.3 Considerations
7 Environmental Forensics Related to soil Background
7 Environmental Forensics Related to soil Background
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons
7.3 Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons (TPH)
7.4 Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)
7.5 Polychlorinated Dibenzo-p-Dioxins and Dibenzofurans (PCDD/F)
7.6 Perfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)
7.7 Remote Sensing
8 Conceptual Site Model and Data Quality Objectives
8 Conceptual Site Model and Data Quality Objectives
8.1 Conceptual Site Model
8.2 Data Quality Objectives
9 Sampling
9 Sampling
9.1 Background Reference Areas
9.2 Sample Depth
9.3 Sample Size
9.4 Sample Methods
9.5 Sampling Design
9.6 Sample Collection Methods
9.7 Sample Handling
10 Analytical Methods
10 Analytical Methods
10.1 Introduction
10.2 Obtaining Reliable Analytical Data
10.3 Analytical Limits
10.4 Sample Preparation
10.5 Analytical Test Methods
11 Statistics
11 Statistics
11.1 Data Requirements
11.2 Data Distribution
11.3 Treatment of Nondetects
11.4 Graphical displays
11.5 Outliers
11.6 Confidence Interval Limit, Coefficient, and Limit
11.7 Statistical Values Used to Represent Background
11.8 Statistical Tests to Compare Site and Background Datasets
11.9 Statistical Software
12 Regulatory Framework from State Survey
12 Regulatory Framework from State Survey
12.1 Description of State Survey
12.2 Overview of State Survey Results
12.3 State Survey Results
13 Existing Guidance and Studies
14 Case Studies
14 Case Studies
14.1 Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) Soil Background Case Study
14.2 Former Firearms Training Range Soil Background Case Study
14.3 Region 4 RARE Urban Background Study
14.4 Geochemical Evaluation Case Study—Statistical Outlier is an Uncontaminated Soil Sample
14.5 Geochemical Evaluation Case Study—Statistical Outlier Is a Contaminated Soil Sample
14.6 Geochemical Evaluation Case Study–Contaminated Soil Sample Is Not a Statistical Outlier
14.7 Environmental Forensics Case Study—PAHs from Leaked Petroleum Versus Contaminated Fill
Frameworks
Frameworks
Framework 1
Framework 2
Framework 3
Appendices
Appendix A. Upper Limits Used to Estimate Background Threshold Values
Appendix B. Index Plots
Appendix C. Additional Sources of Information for PAHs in Soil
Additional Information
Team Contacts
Glossary
Acronyms
Acknowledgments
References
Document Feedback

 

Soil Background and Risk Assessment
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Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments

The members of the Interstate Technology & Regulatory Council (ITRC) Soil Background and Risk Assessment (SBR) Team wish to acknowledge the individuals, organizations, and agencies that contributed to this guidance. 

As part of the broader ITRC effort, the SBR Team effort is funded primarily by the U.S. Department of Energy. Additional funding and support have been provided by the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  

The SBR team was led by Bonnie Brooks of the Washington Department of Ecology and Claudio Sorrentino of the California Department of Toxic Substances Control. 

Team leaders were assisted by program advisors Jim Rocco and Lesley Hay Wilson of Sage Risk Solutions LLC. 

Specifically, the team recognizes the efforts and important contributions of the following: 

 
 

State and Local Government

Naji Akladiss
Maine Department of Environmental Protection

Patrick Boettcher
Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control

Willliam Bosan
California Department of Toxic Substances Control

Robin Chinnery
Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy

Weiquan Dong
Nevada Division of Environmental Protection

Erin Endsley
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Brian Faulkner
California Department of Toxic Substances Control

Debi Goodwin
Arizona Dept. of Environmental Quality

Brady Johnson
Idaho Department of Environmental Quality

Margaret Greene
Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation

Paul Kulpa
Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management

Marsha Lay
Indiana Department of Environmental Management

Gail Lipfert
Maine Department of Environmental Protection

Adam McMahon
Idaho Department of Environmental Quality

Kathryn Morris
Montana Department of Environmental Quality

Norka Paden
Idaho Department of Environmental Quality

Anita Poulsen
Florida Department of Health

Jeff Rackow
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality

Jim Ridenour
New York State Department of Health

Divinia Ries
Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy

Shukla Roy-Semmen
California Department of Toxic Substances Control

Sandra Snyder
South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control

Harold Templin
Indiana Department of Environmental Management

Susan Turnblom 
Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

 

 

 

Federal Government

Sydney Chan
USEPA 

Felicia Barnett
USEPA ORD

Matthew Lambert
USEPA

Cynthia Auld
US Army Corps of Engineers

Amy Rosenstein
US Army Corps of Engineers

Laurel Woodruff
USGS

 

 

Academia

Marta Shore
University of Minnesota

Geoff Siemering
University of Wisconsin, Madison

Jennifer Weidhaas
University of Utah

 

 

 
 

Industry Affiliates

Mark Benotti
NewFields Companies LLC

Gino Bianchi-Mosquera
GSI Environmental, Inc.

Kelly Black
Neptune and Company, Inc.

Doug Blue
ExxonMobil

Mark Bruce
Eurofins

Brian Church
Windward Environmental, LLC

Regan Dahmer
ExxonMobil

Emily Davis
APTIM

Charlie DeWolf
Trihydro Corporation

Joann Dyson
GHD

Allison Geiselbrecht
Floyd|Snider

David Heidlauf
Ramboll

Michael Kierski
Exponent

Alexander Kliminsky
GHD

Jane Parkin Kullmann
Wood PLC

Kanan Patel-Coleman
Burns & McDonnell

Jay Peters
Haley & Aldrich, Inc.

Chrissy Peterson
EHS Support, LLC

Pamela Rodgers
Battelle Memorial Institute

Shahrokh Rouhani
NewFields Companies LLC

Barrie Selcoe
Jacobs

Leyla Shams
NewFields Companies LLC

Anita Singh
Brown and Caldwell

Tamara Sorell
Brown and Caldwell

Scott Stout
NewFields Companies LLC

James Studer
InfraSUR LLC

Anna Sutton
Cardno

Sagar Thakali
AECOM

Karen Thorbjornsen
APTIM

Allen Uhler
NewFields Companies LLC

Ann Verwiel
ToxStrategies, Inc.

Michael Worden
Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc.

 
 
 
 
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