Some contamination risks are not as obvious as others. Often, vapour or gas intrusion into buildings can be the most relevant (or the only) exposure pathway.
Soil vapour and landfill gas can move through the ground and enter buildings, basements, service trenches or enclosed spaces. If these issues are identified late, they can affect planning, design, construction cost and future use of the site.
Soil vapour assessment may be relevant where the site history indicates a potential for volatile contaminants in soil or groundwater. Typical sources include dry cleaning solvents, degreasers, petrol and other volatile organic compounds.
Landfill gas assessment may be relevant where a site is on or near a former landfill, filled land or waste area. Methane and carbon dioxide can migrate through the ground.
These issues are much easier to deal with at the development design stage. If vapour or gas protection is needed, it can often be incorporated into the slab, basement, service layout or ventilation strategy. Retrofitting controls later is usually harder, more disruptive and more expensive.
Atma Environmental undertakes soil vapour assessment, landfill gas assessment, methane risk assessment and related contaminated land investigations. We help project teams understand whether vapour or gas is a realistic issue, what assessment is needed, and how the findings may affect planning, audit, design or construction.
