Location: Jersey City, NJ, USA

ESI was retained by G. Heller Enterprises (Heller), a developer for Home Depot, to provide environmental assessment and remediation services at the Former Ryerson Steel/Mutual Chemical Site in Jersey City, NJ. Heller was buying this 12-acre property from Allied Signal, the current owners, and was going to lease the property to Home Depot.

ESI conducted Phase I & II site assessments that focused on practical property redevelopment issues. Under the NJDEP's ISRA program, a preliminary assessment/site investigation was completed.

Sampling of soil and groundwater was conducted to delineate contamination that could impact the planned property redevelopment. The analytical data from this sampling also provided ESI with the technical justification to support the proposed remedial approach and deed restriction.

Based upon our site assessment findings and the site redevelopment plan, ESI evaluated remedial alternatives and recommended that the site be capped. ESI developed site-specific soil cleanup criteria and the specifications for a geosynthetic liner system to protect against chromium migration to groundwater.

ESI worked in a collaborative effort with Allied Signal's consultant and Heller's construction engineers to ensure the capping system design was acceptable to the various involved parties. The resulting cap system consisted of a non-woven geotextile, overlain by a flexible geomembrane liner, with a geocomposite drainage layer placed directly above the geomembrane. Portions of this system were either covered with soil and asphalt or concrete building slabs.

ESI developed the remediation site health and safety plan that included a comprehensive worker-monitoring program for chromium exposure. ESI also developed the liner system operation and maintenance plan. The NJDEP approved the remedial plan and allowed for the filing of a Declaration of Environmental Restriction.