United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Research and Development (481)
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response (5102G)
EPA/542/F-99/027
November 1999
Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons
(TPH) in Soil Subgroup
RTDF
Current RTDF
Bloremediation Consbrtiwia
UNERT StoilwM
"-"••' "?" ",' - ••-,
Team : - ^ — "^s
permeable Reactive
Harriers Action Team
Organics Action Team
Sediments Remediation
The TPH Subgroup was formed by the Phytoremediation Action
Team to determine the effectiveness of phytoremediation in
degrading aged petroleum hydrocarbons in soil at multiple locations
under various climate conditions. The Subgroup's mission is to
combine expertise, technologies, and resources to conduct phytore-
mediation field tests for degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in
order to develop guidelines for future applications and to gain public
and regulatory acceptance.
Accomplishments
The Subgroup has developed a suggested standardized protocol,
"Phytoremediation of Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Soil," for use in
field testing phytoremediation technology. The protocol includes
information on designing and evaluating test sites to obtain data to
assist regulators in determining whether or not phytoremediation is a
viable treatment.
A working draft of the protocol is available on the Phytoremediation
of Organics Action Team home page on the RTDF Web site
(www.rtdf.org). The protocol suggests that each test site have four
randomized test blocks, each containing an unplanted control plot
that would be kept weed free, a native plant species plot, and a plot
with a standardized mix of rye, legume, and fescue. The protocol
includes recommendations on standard:
• plot size, replications, and statistical approach
• soil and plant sampling techniques
• plant growth and hydrocarbon analysis techniques
• assessment of soils for bacterial hydrocarbon degraders
• sampling times over a three-year period
In addition, the protocol includes attachments that expand on (1)
seeding mixture; (2) soil sample collection; (3) vegetation sampling,
storage, and shipping method; (4) microbial analysis; and (5) plant
assessment.
The Subgroup is currently involved in field projects at nine sites in
Alaska, Arkansas, California, Kansas, Ohio, New York, and Rhode
Island. Each of the projects is using the protocol developed by the
Subgroup. Field activities at California, New York, Ohio, and Rhode
Island sites are being supported, through Cooperative Research and
Development Agreements (CRADAs), with funding and/or in-kind
services from participating Subgroup members. CRADAs are
designed to encourage partnerships involving government agencies,
private industry, and academia. A similar agreement is in process to
-------
support the Arkansas project. Activities at the
Kansas site and the three Alaska sites are funded
primarily by the U.S. Department of Defense's
Environmental Security Technology Certification
Program (ESTCP).
Subgroup Members
Membership in the TPH Subgroup is open to repre-
sentatives of industry, government, and academia
who are interested in promoting phytoremediation
as a technology used to remediate TPH in soil.
Organizations currently represented in the Subgroup
include:
Amoco Research Center
ARM Group
Chevron Corporation
Exxon Product Research
Exxon Research and Engineering
Microbial Insights, Inc.
Phillips Petroleum Company
ThermoRetec, Inc.
U.S. Army Cold Regions
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Kansas State University
University of Arkansas
University of Oklahoma
University of Tennessee
University of Washington
Subgroup members get together frequently via
conference call to share information and discuss
progress of activities. Formal meetings are held as
needed and are often co-located with other related
conferences. Members who sign CRADAs to partic-
ipate in specific field activities must agree to:
• Commit 3-5 years to the project
• Participate in periodic conference calls and attend
annual or biannual meetings
• Provide test sites
• Adhere to the minimum requirements outlined in
the Subgroup's protocol.
For More Information
More information on the TPH Subgroup can be
obtained at the RTDF web site, or by contacting the
Subgroup Co-Chairs.
Phil Sayre, Chair
Microbiologist
Office of Pollution Prevention & Toxics
Technology Innovation Office
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
401 M Street, SW (7403)
Washington, DC 20460
202-260-9570
Fax: 202-260-1236
E-mail: sayre.phil @ epamail.epa.gov
Lucinda Jackson, Chair
Chevron Corporation
100 Chevron Way
P.O. Box 1627
Richmond, CA 94802-0627
510-242-1047
Fax: 510-242-5577
E-mail: luaj@chevron.corn
------- |