Executive Summary: Many pathways exist for transportation agencies and other public and private agencies to become responsible for sites contaminated by hazardous wastes. As a reult, agencies frequently face a multitude of lega, regulatory, financial, technical, and health risk problems. When transportation agencies become involved in the remediation of hazardous waste sites, the common practice is to hire consultants and contractors for the clean up process. Because the field of hazardous waste site remediation is changing so rapidly, agency personnel evaluating the consultant's recommendations need to ahve access to the most recent regulatory and remediation information. Early stages of the remediation process typically involve site assessment, and the identification of feasible technologies for treatment. The objective of this study was to develop a user friendly computerized methodology for screening out the most inappropirate treatment technologies for a specific waste at a specific site. The STEP model was developed for this purpose using knowledge-base expert system techniques. Object oriented programming was used to interface multiple rule-bases, databases, and a simulation model. The STEP model was applied to a case study involving the spillage of 27,000 gallons of JP-4 jet fuel, due to the failure of an automatic shut-off vlave, at an air facility. The recommendation produced by the model agreed with the acutal remedial action taken at the site. SPET is a prototype model that, if developed to its potential, could be used to promote nation-wide consistency, provide the framework for building a shared base of knowledge about successful and unsuccessful solution techniques, allow non-experts to do preliminary screening of appropirate technologies, and provide a training tool for in-house personnel.
Grenney, William J. and Penmetsa, Ravi Kumar, "Computer Methodology for Transportation Agencies to Screen Technologies for Hazardous Waste Remediation" (1993). Reports. Paper 457.