High Resolution Site Characterizations (HRSC) are a set of methods and techniques used to locate the contamination affecting a site and the geophysical context in which they arise, with a precision adapted to the site’s heterogeneity, for faster and more efficient remediation (definition adapted from EPA).
This innovative approach distinguishes itself with the use of technologies allowing continuous and fast data acquisition with uncertainties of the order of the centimeter. For exemple, figure 1 shows the results of a single probing from 0m to 11m that allows the detection of a Volatil Organic Compounds contamination plume between depths 7.2m and 9.2m (green and blue curves, at the center). Electroconductivity and hydraulic pressures, indicative of soil types, suggest that this contamination takes place after the transition between two granulometric layers.
The results are displayed almost instantaneously and are easily interpreted directly from the site. This ability to collect a great amount of precise, continuous data in real time allows for better cost-effective decision-making with regards to environmental evaluation and site remediation. The resulting multi-scale conceptual model one can infer from the data offers an ability to understand and treat an affected site with a unprecedented accuracy in Québec.
Therefore, complementing your usual characterizations with HRSC allow not only to streamline the process and save costs, but also eliminates many great environmental and economical risks associated with the uncertainty of conventional methods. The synergy of both approaches gives environmental expert a refined understanding of the dynamics of their sites and their contaminants, all the while being more competitive and formulating optimized remediation recommendations, to the great pleasure of their client base!
