Projects › Story Road Landfill

Project Background

An environmental consulting firm hired by the City of San Jose ceased to provide services, leaving the City with unfulfilled, time-sensitive regulatory requirements at the Story Road Landfill.

Solutions Provided

RRM worked with the City to rapidly re-activate a groundwater extraction and treatment (GWET) system, which controls migration of leachate and petroleum hydrocarbon- and solvent-impacted groundwater originating at the Story Road Landfill site. In addition, RRM conducted groundwater monitoring of the well network used to characterize conditions at and near the landfill. The GWET system originally consisted of an air stripper, forwarding tank, chemical injection system, filters, gas-phase carbon adsorption unit, and liquid-phase carbon adsorption unit. Treated groundwater is discharged to Coyote Creek under an NPDES permit.

RRM promptly re-activated the GWET system, completed semi-annual groundwater monitoring, and submitted the associated regulatory reports. RRM worked with the City to meet project requirements and City budget constraints. In an effort to find ways for the City to lower costs, RRM compared the cost of groundwater treatment using liquid-phase carbon adsorption with the cost of treatment using air stripping and carbon adsorption. RRM was able to show that with minimal system modifications, the City could save $3 per gallon of treated groundwater by using liquid-phase carbon adsorption alone. The system was modified accordingly and efficient operation continues. RRM is now working to cut operating costs by achieving modifications to the sampling, monitoring, and reporting requirements currently mandated by the regulatory oversight agency.

BENEFITS TO CLIENT