Velsicol Chemical Corporation, Superfund Site, Residential Soil Removal
Job Site Services, Inc. (JSS) contracted to perform a highly technical excavation and backfilling project at 52 residential properties impacted with DDT and PBB located within a Superfund Site in St. Louis, Michigan.
In preparation for project activities, staff attended pre-construction meetings at each residence with the prime contractor and the owner’s representative. The project required leaving access for home owners and safely securing their property. To meet schedule requirements, coordination with the surveyor and landscape contractor was necessary and multiple crews were utilized to perform excavation and backfilling activities concurrently on multiple sites. To facilitate excavation of the impacted soils, 166 trees ranging from 2 inches to greater than 30 inches in size were removed.
Excavation and backfill specifications required meeting strict vertical excavation tolerances for excavation depths and backfill on a 10 x10 foot grid. Activities were completed within 12 inches of homes and other permanent structures at depths which varied from 6 inches to 4 feet deep. Overall, over 18,850 in place cubic yards of impacted soils were removed; 25,360 tons of impacted soils and debris were transported to and disposed of at a non-hazardous landfill. All locations were backfilled with class II sand and 6 inches of topsoil to grade; total quantities of 11,400 in place cubic yards of sand and 6520 in place cubic yards of topsoil. Seventeen gravel driveways were installed to satisfy home owners’ requests. Approximately 3,000 square feet of concrete sidewalk were restored.
Each residential site was restored to pre-excavation condition with sod, trees, and plantings. A post construction meeting was held with each homeowner representative to verify project satisfaction.
