Green Remediation Focus

Best Management Practices

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) series of green remediation fact sheets describes the concepts and tools for using best management practices (BMPs) to reduce the environmental footprint of activities associated with assessing and remediating contaminated sites. The BMPs involve specific activities to address the core elements of greener cleanups:

• Reduce total energy use and increase the percentage of energy from renewable resources.
• Reduce air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions.
• Reduce water use and preserve water quality.
• Conserve material resources and reduce waste.
• Protect land and ecosystem services.

Each BMP fact sheet focuses on site remediation technologies that are frequently implemented, activities common to most site cleanup projects, or site types with relatively unique sets of conditions:

• An Overview (2 pp, 525K)
• Bioremediation (4pp, 493K)
• Clean Fuel & Emission Technologies for Site Cleanup (5 pp, 425K)
• Excavation and Surface Restoration (5pp, 286K)
• Implementing In Situ Thermal Technologies (6pp, 249K)
• Integrating Renewable Energy (6 pp, 840K)
• Materials and Waste Management (4pp, 397K)
• Mining Sites (6pp, 535K)
• PCB Cleanups (8pp, 760K)
• Pump and Treat Systems (6pp, 667K)
• Sites with Leaking Underground Storage Tanks (4pp, 216K)
• Site Investigation and Environmental Monitoring (4pp, 179K)
• Soil Vapor Extraction & Other Air-Driven Systems (4pp, 457K)
• Waste Cover Systems and Integrated Site Reuse Planning (5 pp, 641K)

An Overview (2 pp, 525K) briefly summarizes the underlying Principles for Greener Cleanups, explains relevant cleanup programs and stages in which the BMPs may be applied, and describes key tools for understanding a cleanup project's environmental footprint and prioritizing BMPs to minimize the footprint.