A significant component of managing environmental liability involves understanding environmental conditions through environmental assessments. Whether impacts are suspected in site soil, groundwater, surface water, sediment, indoor air, or soil vapor, Trento has a broad range of experience to assist with the characterization of industrial and abandoned properties with legacy environmental issues.
Site assessments can present multiple challenges, including limited site access, business interruption, and challenging locations. Our approach to site assessments is to gather the most comprehensive data with the least impact on the owner and the property. We focus on quickly obtaining quality investigation data allowing for adequate delineation of impacts, as well as the potential for human or ecological receptor risk. Consequently we are able to complete assessment work and adapt our field methods to keep our professionals safe.
Trento provides environmental assessment services to its clients in industry and government regardless of project size, from simple ASTM Phase I Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs) to large investigations requiring hundreds of sampling points. We work as an extension of our clients’ staff to identify environmental liabilities that affect financial reserve estimates, document the end-state vision, and reach closure of the environmental matters. Our professionals supplement standard analytical sampling data sets with data from advanced characterization tools such as MIP and UVOST to develop conceptual site models (CSMs). A solid and defensible CSM enables clients to make sound financial decisions regarding the pathway to closure, whether through targeted remediation, a human health and/or ecological risk assessment, or long-term site monitoring. To effectively communicate the CSM for a site, Trento uses an integrated strategy to transform standard GIS-based assessment data into a 3-D model of geologic stratigraphy as well as soil and groundwater concentration data. Through this process, we have identified primary contaminant fate and transport pathways for potential migration, which is critical to determining whether the risk of offsite groundwater requires remediation, and whether vapor intrusion into nearby enclosed spaces requires indoor air or soil gas assessments and potentially vapor mitigation.
