Remediation management of contaminated sites using geostatistical methods

The present paper deals with the management of contaminated sites remediation and, within this wide subject, it addresses two particular aspects: a) the definition of the areas to be cleaned up and b) for each area, the assessment of the minimum quantity of soil to be treated or removed to reach predetermined target quality goals. Objective of the work is to set up a numerical procedure, based on geostatistical methods, suited to solve the mentioned problems. These arise in a remediation process when, following the characterization phase and the selection of the remediation technology, it is necessary to perform the quantitative assessment of the contamination required to draw the final project and to estimate relevant costs. The procedure has been applied to a polluted site in northern Italy where, for several decades, different chemical activities have been based. The site has recently been investigated and characterized. The illustrated application is to be considered just as an experimental support to identify and finalize the procedure.