technical reportS series no. Contamination by mixed radioactive and hazardous substances poses a particular challenge because of the combination of different types of hazards and potential exposures, and by the different, and sometimes conflicting, regulatory frameworks for radiological and 442 non-radiological contamination. This report outlines applicable remediation technologies and strategies, with their advantages and Remediation of Sites with Mixed Contamination of Radioactive and Other Hazardous Substances Technical Reports SeriEs No. 442 limitations being discussed. The need for a holistic design of the remedial action is stressed. An extensive body of references, including relevant web sites, will help the reader to find more detailed or more up to date information. Remediation of Sites with Mixed Contamination of Radioactive and Other Hazardous Substances INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY VIENNA ISBN 92–0–104705–3 ISSN 0074–1914 D442_CovI-IV.indd 1 2006-02-13 14:06:49 REMEDIATION OF SITES WITH MIXED CONTAMINATION OF RADIOACTIVE AND OTHER HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES The following States are Members of the International Atomic Energy Agency: AFGHANISTAN GREECE PANAMA ALBANIA GUATEMALA PARAGUAY ALGERIA HAITI PERU ANGOLA HOLY SEE PHILIPPINES ARGENTINA HONDURAS POLAND ARMENIA HUNGARY PORTUGAL AUSTRALIA ICELAND QATAR AUSTRIA INDIA REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA AZERBAIJAN INDONESIA ROMANIA BANGLADESH IRAN, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF RUSSIAN FEDERATION BELARUS IRAQ SAUDI ARABIA BELGIUM IRELAND SENEGAL BENIN ISRAEL SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO BOLIVIA ITALY SEYCHELLES BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA JAMAICA SIERRA LEONE BOTSWANA JAPAN BRAZIL JORDAN SINGAPORE BULGARIA KAZAKHSTAN SLOVAKIA BURKINA FASO KENYA SLOVENIA CAMEROON KOREA, REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA CANADA KUWAIT SPAIN CENTRAL AFRICAN KYRGYZSTAN SRI LANKA REPUBLIC LATVIA SUDAN CHAD LEBANON SWEDEN CHILE LIBERIA SWITZERLAND CHINA LIBYAN ARAB JAMAHIRIYA SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC COLOMBIA LIECHTENSTEIN TAJIKISTAN COSTA RICA LITHUANIA THAILAND CÔTE D’IVOIRE LUXEMBOURG THE FORMER YUGOSLAV CROATIA MADAGASCAR REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA CUBA MALAYSIA TUNISIA CYPRUS MALI TURKEY CZECH REPUBLIC MALTA UGANDA DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC MARSHALL ISLANDS UKRAINE OF THE CONGO MAURITANIA UNITED ARAB EMIRATES DENMARK MAURITIUS UNITED KINGDOM OF DOMINICAN REPUBLIC MEXICO GREAT BRITAIN AND ECUADOR MONACO NORTHERN IRELAND EGYPT MONGOLIA UNITED REPUBLIC EL SALVADOR MOROCCO ERITREA MYANMAR OF TANZANIA ESTONIA NAMIBIA UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ETHIOPIA NETHERLANDS URUGUAY FINLAND NEW ZEALAND UZBEKISTAN FRANCE NICARAGUA VENEZUELA GABON NIGER VIETNAM GEORGIA NIGERIA YEMEN GERMANY NORWAY ZAMBIA GHANA PAKISTAN ZIMBABWE The Agency’s Statute was approved on 23 October 1956 by the Conference on the Statute of the IAEA held at United Nations Headquarters, New York; it entered into force on 29 July 1957. The Headquarters of the Agency are situated in Vienna. Its principal objective is “to accelerate and enlarge the contribution of atomic energy to peace, health and prosperity throughout the world’’. TECHNICAL REPORTS SERIES No. 442 REMEDIATION OF SITES WITH MIXED CONTAMINATION OF RADIOACTIVE AND OTHER HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY VIENNA, 2006 COPYRIGHT NOTICE All IAEA scientific and technical publications are protected by the terms of the Universal Copyright Convention as adopted in 1952 (Berne) and as revised in 1972 (Paris). The copyright has since been extended by the World Intellectual Property Organization (Geneva) to include electronic and virtual intellectual property. Permission to use whole or parts of texts contained in IAEA publications in printed or electronic form must be obtained and is usually subject to royalty agreements. Proposals for non-commercial reproductions and translations are welcomed and will be considered on a case by case basis. Enquiries should be addressed by email to the Publishing Section, IAEA, at [email protected] or by post to: Sales and Promotion Unit, Publishing Section International Atomic Energy Agency Wagramer Strasse 5 P.O. Box 100 A-1400 Vienna Austria fax: +43 1 2600 29302 tel.: +43 1 2600 22417 http://www.iaea.org/books © IAEA, 2006 Printed by the IAEA in Austria February 2006 STI/DOC/010/442 IAEA Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Remediation of sites with mixed contamination of radioactive and other hazardous substances. — Vienna: International Atomic Energy Agency, 2006. p. ; 24 cm. – (Technical reports series, ISSN 0074–1914 ; 442) STI/DOC/010/442 ISBN 92–0–104705–3 Includes bibliographical references. 1. Hazardous waste site remediation. — I. International Atomic Energy Agency. II. Technical reports series (International Atomic Energy Agency) ; 442. IAEAL 05–00422 FOREWORD The IAEA attaches great importance to the dissemination of information that can assist Member States with the development, implementation, maintenance and improvement of systems, programmes and activities that support the nuclear fuel cycle and nuclear applications, including the legacy of past practices and accidents. Consequently, the IAEA has initiated a comprehensive programme of work covering all aspects of environmental remediation: — Technical and non-technical factors influencing decisions on environ- mental remediation; — Site characterization techniques and strategies; — The assessment of remediation technologies; — The assessment of technical options for cleanup of contaminated media; — Post-restoration compliance monitoring; — The assessment of the costs of remediation measures; — ‘Mixed’ contamination, i.e. the co-occurrence of radionuclides and heavy metals or (toxic) organic compounds, which poses a particular challenge to those charged with its remediation. Mixed contamination poses a particular challenge because of the combination of different types of hazards and potential exposures. These challenges concern inter alia worker health and safety, environmental impacts, selection of remediation technologies and waste management options. While radionuclides and toxic (heavy) metals pose similar and mostly compatible challenges, organic contaminants often require different approaches that may not be compatible with the former. Additional complexity is introduced by different and sometimes conflicting regulatory frameworks for radiological and non-radiological contamination, including the prescribed waste management routes. In consideration of the added complexities of remediating mixed contamination, the IAEA determined that this subject warranted the development of a specialized report for assisting Member States. This report outlines applicable remediation technologies and strategies, with their advantages and limitations being discussed. The need for a holistic design of the remedial action is stressed. An extensive body of references, including relevant web sites, will help the reader to find more detailed or more up to date information. The technical officer responsible for this publication was W.E. Falck of the Division of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology. EDITORIAL NOTE Although great care has been taken to maintain the accuracy of information contained in this publication, neither the IAEA nor its Member States assume any responsibility for consequences which may arise from its use. The use of particular designations of countries or territories does not imply any judgement by the publisher, the IAEA, as to the legal status of such countries or territories, of their authorities and institutions or of the delimitation of their boundaries. The mention of names of specific companies or products (whether or not indicated as registered) does not imply any intention to infringe proprietary rights, nor should it be construed as an endorsement or recommendation on the part of the IAEA. CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1. Background . 1 1.2. Scope . 4 1.3. Structure . 4 2. TYPES OF SITES, HAZARDS, AND CONTAMINANT BEHAVIOUR. 5 2.1. Types of sites with mixed contamination . 5 2.2. Types of hazards at sites with mixed contamination . 6 2.2.1. Overview . 6 2.2.2. Radionuclides . 11 2.2.3. Toxic and heavy metals . 12 2.2.4. Toxic organic compounds . 12 2.2.5. Nitrates . 13 2.2.6. Biohazardous agents . 13 2.2.7. Asbestos and other inhalable fibres. 14 2.2.8. Flammable and combustible materials . 14 2.2.9. Corrosive chemicals . 15 2.2.10. Reactive chemicals. 15 2.2.11. Pyrophoric metals . 16 2.2.12. Ordnance and explosives . 17 2.3. Environmental behaviour of contaminants. 17 2.3.1. Overview . 17 2.3.2. Physical environmental processes . 19 2.3.3. Chemical environmental processes . 21 2.3.4. Biological environmental processes. 25 3. REGULATORY IMPLICATIONS . 26 3.1. Regulatory regimes . 26 3.2. Assessments of environmental impacts . 27 3.3. Cleanup targets . 29 3.4. Limits on worker and public exposures . 30 3.5. Waste management . 31 3.6. Mixed waste transportation. 32 3.7. Regulations affecting the implementation of a remediation operation. 32 3.8. Institutional control and stewardship issues . 33 4. IMPLICATIONS FOR WORKER HEALTH AND SAFETY . 34 4.1. General considerations . 34 4.2. Establishment of a proper organization. 34 4.3. Training . 34 4.4. Hazard characterization and exposure assessment . 35 4.5. Health and safety plan . 35 4.6. Site access and hazard controls. 36 4.7. Site and worker monitoring. 36 4.8. Worker and equipment decontamination . 36 4.9. Emergency preparedness and response. 37 4.10. Contingency planning . 37 5. IMPLICATIONS FOR SAMPLING AND ANALYSIS . 38 5.1. Overview . 38 5.2. Sampling strategies. 38 5.3. Sampling techniques. 39 5.4. Health and safety precautions.