A former railroad ran through the client's property near Klamath Falls, hauling trees from the forest to three different mills. In the mid-20th century, the locomotives were cleaned using chlorinated solvents, causing soil and groundwater contamination around the maintenance shop. To contain the plume, GSI implemented cometabolic bioremediation using down-well gas infusion equipment in 2012, and oversaw the planting of more than 300 poplar trees at the trailing edge of the plume to facilitate direct uptake of the shallow plume. In 2015, GSI designed and oversaw the removal of more than 5,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil in the source area to enhance the rate of natural attenuation of the plume.
In late 2018, the site officially obtained closure from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.
GSI’s work involved:
A rainbow over the Sycan Shop
The snow car was used on the railroad to remove snow from the tracks. Photo by Scott Flaherty, Stratus Corporation.
Pulling up the gas infuser in one of the wells on site
Excavation of contaminated soils inside of the Sycan Shop