Brantford Soil Remediation Demonstration Project - Greenwich-Mohawk Brownfield Site

The City of Brantford will test an in situ, heat-enhanced soil remediation technology on a portion of its 52-acre Greenwich-Mohawk brownfield site, to guide the full-scale remediation and redevelopment of this prime downtown property. The city is partnering with Dutch company Groundwater Technology and the initiative is partially financed by the Government of the Netherlands through a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ontario Ministry of Environment (MOE). It is the first Ontario test of this proven remediation technology, and the results will provide important lessons learned for communities with brownfield sites across Canada. The Greenwich-Mohawk site consists of three adjacent properties that were heavily used for decades by two large farm equipment manufacturers. The city has conducted a series of environmental site assessments, including approved application GMF 10271, which have identified approximately 700,000 m3 of contaminated material on the site. The soil is significantly impacted with total petroleum hydrocarbons and free phase product that has mixed with the groundwater, as well as chlorinated solvents, PAHs, metals. The field test will target the removal of petroleum hydrocarbons from a 300 m2 area that is the source of an important groundwater contamination plume. Testing will be conducted in two stages: sampling to confirm appropriate soil conditions, followed by the treatment of 1000 m3 of soil to remove two fractions of petroleum hydrocarbons. The treatment process injects hot steam into the soil through injection wells. The mobilized contaminants are extracted with a vacuum system; then condensed, separated and disposed of as chemical waste. This process can be conducted without demolishing existing infrastructure, which would allow the city to preserve heritage buildings on site during the eventual full-scale remediation. The test results will be compared to ex situ remediation methods using a triple-bottom line approach. Public feedback regarding the initiative will be collected through open houses and from citizen volunteers on the Brownfield Community Advisory Committee once the suitability of the test site has been confirmed. The project team will liaise with the MOE to ensure the final test results meet Ministry standards. The city plans to use this technology to help remediate the entire Greenwich-Mohawk site to a residential/parkland standard, to allow for a mixed redevelopment with residential, commercial, and institutional uses. This initiative is a key component of Brantford’s Brownfield Sites Community Improvement Plan, and will help the city achieve its goal of becoming a leader in innovation and brownfields redevelopment. (Project description from original funding application)