Project Summary
To facilitate expansion of an existing childcare center (CCC), ESA was retained to conduct a Preliminary Assessment to fulfill regulatory compliance requirements for New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) and New Jersey Department of Children and Families (NJDCF) CCC licensing. The subject property had been licensed by the State for CCC operation since the early 1990s and the current owner purchased the property based on a 2007 preliminary assessment report prepared by another consultant. The 2007 report concluded that historic property operations were limited to light commercial and retail sales. However, the prior consultant failed to review historic aerial photographs and only performed a limited evaluation of Sanborn Fire Insurance maps. Their 2007 report concluded that no former or current Areas of Concern (AOCs) were present that warranted a site investigation. Based upon this conclusion, the State issued the CCC license. A Licensed Site Remediation Professional (LSRP) had not worked on this property until ESA’s involvement.
ESA prepared a Preliminary Assessment Report for the property and discovered that historic fill and demolition material might be present because former commercial buildings were razed. A subsequent site investigation in the outdoor play area revealed historic fill-related materials and contaminants at concentrations above remediation standards. Further investigation determined impacted soil to be widespread throughout the property, warranting extensive remediation.
Due to the widespread nature of the identified soil contaminants, multiple active and passive remedial measures were evaluated to achieve regulatory compliance. After thorough evaluation of multiple technologies and methods to remediate the various areas of soil contamination, ESA developed a remedial workplan to address the impacted soil, facilitate expansion of the CCC, and to meet the budgetary of goals for the project.
Challenges
Prior to beginning this complex remedial work, ESA coordinated with engineers, architects, state, county, and municipal entities, including the County Planning Board, the Municipal Departments of Engineering and Zoning, and Police. ESA’s input was needed during the design phase of the new building and property features to comply with NJDEP requirements for the identified contaminant levels. The existing childcare facility was required to remain operational throughout the expansion/construction process; therefore, special measures were warranted for the safe operation of facility and protection of the public. Special care had to be taken to maintain the utility services (natural gas, electric, telecommunications, sewer), provide safe access/egress to the existing facility, and implantation of an air monitoring program necessary for protection of the property inhabits during the earthwork construction activities.
Additional challenges existed due to the large extent of the property and widespread presence of soil contamination. Much of the property is undeveloped and removal of all the soil contamination throughout the site was not a feasible approach to achieve remedial compliance. ESA was tasked to develop an approach in-line with the budgetary goals of the project and that adequately met regulatory compliance requirements. Various forms of presumptive and alternative remedies requiring NJDEP preapproval were proposed to achieve remedial compliance for the different use areas of the property.
Proposed Solution
Various factors were considered in development of a remediation plan, including site characteristics (including extent and depth of contamination), projected costs (including the redevelopment, remedial activities and compliance monitoring), and long-term property-use plans. In conjunction with the construction of a new building, parking lot, and associated features, a multi-stage remedial approach was executed that included excavation, transport, and disposal of contaminated soil, redevelopment of the outdoor playground area with synthetic turf, certified clean fill import and protective capping, compliance averaging utilizing Thiessen Polygons, installation of restrictive fencing, and remedial action permitting.
Due to the sensitive nature of the property, ESA managed and coordinated the remediation and redevelopment activities with the project engineers and specialized contractors to keep the CCC fully operational during all remedial activities. Over a year-long redevelopment period, the remediation activities and new construction activities were performed without significant disruption to the facility’s operating schedule. Safe access and egress to the existing building and playground area was maintained and air monitoring was conducted to ensure earthwork activities did not pose an airborne threat to the site occupants.
In all, ESA removed and disposed of approximately 650 tons of historic fill-contaminated soil, restored the property to existing grade with certified clean fill materials, renovated the 4,500 sq/ft outdoor playground area, oversaw the construction of new site features included a 2,500 sq/ft building for classrooms, a new parking lot, sidewalks, and landscaped features, installed restrictive fencing and signage, and sequenced work to allow operation of the CCC facility without closure.
Outcome
ESA remedial action workplan proposal was determined to comply with NJDEP Technical Requirements for Site Remediation and achieved the property owner’s long-term property use as a CCC. The NJDEP childcare unit approved the use of the alternative remedial methods proposed by our LSRP. The implementation of alternative remedial compliance through demonstration Theissen Polygon contaminant concentration averaging and restrictive fencing with notification signage for undeveloped portions of the property resulted in significantly less remedial effort and very significant cost savings for the property owner. ESA prepared a comprehensive remedial action report documenting all the remedial services performed, a deed notice for the property, and soil remedial action permit application for NJDEP approval. Throughout the project, ESA worked diligently to minimize change orders and overall remedial costs. This property is currently preparing for the grand opening and operation of the newly constructed building and classroom spaces, allowing for the enrolment of approximately 35 additional children. While the remedial services were initially an unplanned expense for the property owner, thanks to ESA’s efforts the existing and new CCC facility features are now safer and environmentally compliant for the long-term intended use of the property.