Churngold scooped the Best Conceptual Design award and two further commendations at the Brownfield Briefing Remediation Awards last month. The judges praised the innovative use of In-Situ Chemical Oxidation in low permeability soils at the former ICI Burnhall site in Thornton.

The Brownfield Briefing Remediation Awards honour those in the remediation sector who have demonstrated best practice and shown innovative use of technology in the UK. Now in their fourth year, the awards are organized by Brownfield Briefing and Newzeye. Environmental campaigner, Prof Chris Baines hosted this year’s prize-giving ceremony, which was held in London on 16 September with 300 guests.

Churngold Remediation Ltd won the Best Conceptual Design category for its work at the former ICI Burnhall site in Thornton. Clive Boyle, Vice Chair Environmental Industries Commission (EIC) Contaminated Land Working Group and one of the judges for the awards scheme, credited their work on this project as “truly innovative”. The Thornton site was developed in order to provide for construction of the largest waste processing facility within the Lancashire Waste PFI project. The problem was, the land was identified with hotspots of Monochlorobenzene, dichlorobenzene, TCE and PCE, totalling just over 0.7ha in extent.

After assessing the remedial options, Churngold identified In-Situ Chemical Oxidation as the only option that could meet stakeholders objectives.. However as contamination was partitioned within low permeability soil, conventional methods of injection would not be sufficient to achieve adequate contact. The solution that Churngold offered was based on an innovative combination of soil mixing and high strength oxidants. The process was rapid, and capable of targeting specific areas for greater opportunity of success. Crucially, no waste streams or VOC emissions were generated.

Before remediation work, calculations showed that approximately 17,400kg of contamination was partitioned in soil and NAPL, with a further 210kg in groundwater. Post-remediation, calculations indicated that 11,715kg of contamination was destroyed in-situ as part of the process. Over 80% of targeted areas required only a single round of injection with only NAPL impacted zones requiring a second round of injection. Approximately 48,400 cubin metres of contaminated soil were prevented from being sent to landfill.

Philip Block, the technical manager for FMC, which holds the worldwide patent on the use of persulphate for remediation purposes, commented: “This is one of the largest, if not largest, destruction of contamination at any site using persulphate oxidation.”

Churngold was further commended for its work at the Thornton site – placed as a runner up in the Most Innovative Remediation Method. It was praised for the novelty demonstrated in the combining of the techniques used. Churngold was also runner up in the Best Use of a Single Remediation Treatment Technique category, where the judges recognized the extent of its efforts to remediate a 1,100m? area of creosote tar contamination in Burton-on-Trent.