Former Fuel Transfer Depot (Newbury)

Friday 30 April 2010

The plan for the former fuel transfer depot at Hambridge Road,  Newbury was redevelopment as a retail park. Previous work on the site had shown a confusing picture of hydrocarbon contamination and no clear strategy for remediation.

CL Voelcker developed an innovative strategy for the remediation of the site, which included further investigation to better delineate the contaminant plume and complex negotiations with the Environment Agency to achieve agreement on commercially viable remediation targets acceptable to the regulators, the funders and the developer.

During previous usage of the site leakage from tanks and pipelines together with an operational spillage during fuel transfer had contributed to a contaminant plume extending over an area of 1500 m².

The site is over a water supply aquifer and the investigation revealed a complex hydrogeological regime with upward and downward flow together with seasonal variations in water levels and flow directions.

A hydrogeological risk assessment was carried out leading to determination of the remediation targets for both soils and groundwater.

The development programme was such that time was not available for remediation of the site to be carried out prior to commencing construction. A scheme of remediation was therefore devised to enable in situ air sparging and soil vapour extraction to be carried out whilst construction proceeded above the treatment.

The remediation has been successfully completed and the system decommissioned ahead of the scheduled completion of the development.

The end result has been a very cost effective redevelopment of a derelict and abandoned site.

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