Adaptive Sampling approach to environmental site characterization: Phase 1 demonstration

A technology demonstration that optimizes sampling strategies and real-time data collection was carried out at the Kirtland Air Force Base (KAFB) RB-11 Radioactive Burial Site, Albuquerque, New Mexico in August 1994. The project, which was funded by the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP), involved the application of a geostatistical-based Adaptive Sampling methodology and software with on-site field screening of soils for radiation, organic compounds and metals. The software, known as Plume{trademark}, was developed at Argonne National Laboratory as part of the DOE/OTD-funded Mixed Waste Landfill Integrated Demonstration (MWLID). The objective of the investigation was to compare an innovative Adaptive Sampling approach that stressed real-time decision-making with a conventional RCRA-driven site characterization carried out by the Air Force. The latter investigation used a standard drilling and sampling plan as mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). To make the comparison realistic, the same contractors and sampling equipment (Geoprobe{reg_sign} soil samplers) were used. In both investigations, soil samples were collected at several depths at numerous locations adjacent to burial trenches that contain low-level radioactive waste and animal carcasses; some trenches may also contain mixed waste. Neither study revealed the presence of contaminants appreciably above risk based action levels, indicating that minimal to no migration has occurred away from the trenches. The combination of Adaptive Sampling with field screening achieved a similar level of confidence compared to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) investigation regarding the potential migration of contaminants at the site