Characterization & Remediation of Contaminated Groundwater in Fractured Rock with Kris McCandless of VDEQ

Topic: Characterization & Remediation of Contaminated Groundwater in Fractured Rock  

Characterization and remediation of contaminated groundwater in fractured rock has not been conducted or studied as broadly as groundwater at unconsolidated porous media sites. The physical, chemical and contaminant transport concepts in fractured rock have similarities to unconsolidated porous media, yet there are important differences. The basis for AEG talk is ITRC guidance document Characterization and Remediation of Fractured Rock. The purpose of this guidance is to dispel the belief that fractured rock sites are too complex to characterize and remediate.   

Presenter: Kris McCandless with Virginia Department of Environmental Quality   

"As a consistent contributor and now team leader, I will introduce ITRC and its function in our fields of practice, and then give an abbreviated version of the two-hour fractured rock class that has recently been “retired” from live webinars, using some of my own case studies.  I participated in writing this guidance from 2015 through its publication in 2017 and subsequently introduced the web-based training classes from 2018 through 2022. This topic is a “must have” in any engineering or environmental geologists’ toolbox. Case studies used to demonstrate bedrock remediation include characterizing a hydrocarbon-impacted community well in western Loudoun County, siting a replacement well near Leesburg, and characterizing a DNAPL plume in southwestern Baltimore, MD."