Keystone Environmental’s Contaminated Sites Risk Assessment services provide a practical and cost-effective approach to remediating contaminated sites in accordance with the BC Contaminated Sites Regulation (CSR).
Here are some of the most common questions and answers to help you understand how we can support you on your next development or spill response project.
Question: What is Contaminated Sites Risk Assessment?
Answer: Contaminated Sites Risk Assessment is the process of evaluating whether contamination in environmental media could pose unacceptable health risks to humans and ecological life (plants/invertebrates, aquatic or wildlife).
Question: What is Contaminated Sites Risk Management?
Answer: Risk Management means putting measures in place to mitigate unacceptable risks to people and the environment from contamination. These measures can include:
- Not allowing groundwater from the site to be used as drinking water.
- Covering contaminated soil with pavement, building foundations, or a thick layer of clean soil (more than 1 meter) to isolate it.
- Installing passive barriers to block sub-surface vapours from entering buildings.
Question: Why use a risk-based strategy to remediate a contaminated site?
Answer: A risk-based approach is applied to manage contaminated sites when removing the contamination is not possible, practical, or too costly. For example:
- Contamination is deep in the soil or groundwater and there is a low potential to harm people or the environment.
- Contamination is under building foundations or busy roads where cleanup is not feasible.
- Contamination is in an environmentally sensitive area where removal could result in harm to protected species.
Question: Does BC Ministry of Environment and Parks (BC ENV) accept Risk Assessment / Management as a suitable form of remediation?
Answer: Yes, BC ENV has recognized the use of risk assessment/management at contaminated sites in BC since the mid 1990s. Risk assessment/management can be used to obtain certification documents (both a Certificate of Compliance and Approval in Principle of a remediation plan). Further information on risk assessment/management can be found on BC ENV’s website.
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If you have a contaminated site, Keystone Environmental can help. Our team of experienced professionals, including registered biologists and engineers, specializes in risk assessment and risk management approaches to remediation. Contact us to learn more about our risk assessment services.
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Summary written by:
Michael McLeay, M.A.Sc., R.P.Bio., CSAP, Senior Environmental Risk Assessor
Adam Radlowski, M.Sc., R.P.Bio., Senior Environmental Risk Assessor
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