Road Map to Understanding Innovative Technology Options for Brownfields Investigation and Cleanup

The information presented below is intended to help brownfields stakeholders better understand the types of contaminants typically found at brownfields sites and the range of technologies that may be appropriate for assessing and remediating those contaminants during the various phases of a site cleanup.

What Are the Causes of Contamination at Brownfields Sites?

Section 101 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) defines brownfields sites as “real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant.” Almost any former property, industrial or nonindustrial, where chemicals were used, produced, or reclaimed is a potential brownfields site. Over the operational history of the site or through its current use, contamination may have resulted from use, storage, or disposal of various products or chemicals. Some of the products commonly used or generated at the sites that may have resulted in contamination of structures, soils, or groundwater include the following:

A wide variety of chemical contaminants may be present at brownfields sites. The following tables present information on the sites, typical contaminants, and investigative and remedial technologies:

Seven general contaminant groups are included in Tables A-1, A-2, and A-3. Descriptions of the seven contaminant groups have been included at the end of this guide to provide supplemental information about them. In addition, supplemental information about treatment technologies described in Table A-3 also has been included at the end of this guide.

The information in this guide was obtained from various U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sources. It is intended to provide general information on brownfields sites, contaminants, and technologies and is not intended to be all-inclusive. Contaminants and activities associated with common brownfields site types may not be relevant to every site. Additionally, investigation and remediation technologies may not be appropriate for the listed contaminants in all situations. Stakeholders should consult EPA or state officials, qualified professionals, and other sources of information when proceeding with redevelopment activities.

What Types of Contaminants Are Found at Brownfields Sites?

Various contaminants potentially may be present at brownfields sites. Table A-1 lists common brownfields site types, activities that may have lead to contamination over the operational history of these sites, and the contaminant groups typically associated with these activities. In this guide, contaminant groups are presented rather than the specific contaminants. Information about the contaminant groups is included below under What Are the Contaminant Groups Presented in Tables A-1, A-2, and A-3? Please note that if a contaminant group is listed, it does not imply that all the contaminants within a particular group are associated with each site type.

Agricultural Feed supply and other agricultural chemical distribution points may be contaminated with fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides. Groundwater, drainage area sediments, soils, and nearby surface waters may be contaminated with pesticides and herbicides and could exhibit elevated levels of nitrate from fertilizer runoff. Contamination at agricultural sites may also arise from chemicals used to operate, clean, and maintain farm equipment such as fuel, oil, grease, and solvents.	x	x	x	x		x
Battery recycling and disposal Battery recycling and disposal facilities regenerate, reclaim, and dispose of used batteries. Many batteries contain toxic constituents such as lead, mercury, and cadmium. The metal in used batteries is separated from other battery constituents and processed for reuse. Lead-acid automobile batteries must be “broken” to reclaim the lead within. In battery breaking, the top of the battery casing is removed, the sulfuric acid solution inside is drained, and the lead components are separated from the casing. The remaining battery casing may be rinsed prior to disposal in order to remove residual lead oxide. Discarded acid and rinse water may be stored in lagoons or tanks. Chemicals may be released to soil and groundwater by leaking tanks or through spillage during the breaking process. Discarded casings may be buried. Any metal remaining on buried, discarded casings may leach into soil and groundwater. The extracted metal must be smelted prior to reuse. Particulate matter emitted by the smelter may contaminate nearby surface soil.						x
Chemical and dye manufacturing A wide range of chemicals are used and generated in facilities that manufacture, reformulate, and package various chemicals and dyes for commercial and industrial use. The types of contaminants released depend on the raw materials, processes, equipment and maintenance practices used. Environmental contamination resulting from chemical and dye manufacturing may persist in nearby or downstream surface waters or sediments long after operations have ceased. Moreover, chemical operations can change over time or involve multiple processes; therefore, the sites may be overlaid with several generations of wastes from a variety of products or processes. Many chemical facilities also have quality assurance and research laboratories that use small quantities of toxic chemicals that could contaminate isolated locations.	x	x	x	x
Chlor-alkali manufacturing Chlor-alkali plants produce a variety of chemicals, including chlorine, caustic soda, hydrochloric acid, sodium hypochlorite, sodium hydrosulfite, salt, hydrogen, sulfur dioxide, and spent sulfuric acid. Three basic processes are used for the manufacture of chlorine and caustic soda from brine: the mercury cell, diaphragm cell, and membrane cell processes. The mercury cell process uses elemental mercury as the cathode and produces mercury-contaminated wastewater, solid waste, and gaseous emissions. The process and waste streams must be carefully controlled to prevent the release of mercury to the environment. The diaphragm cell process may use lead or graphite anodes and asbestos diaphragms and may generate chlorinated hydrocarbons as a by-product. The membrane cell process is the most modern and has economic and environmental advantages. The primary by-product of the membrane cell process is dilute hydrochloric acid, which must be neutralized before it is discharged into the environment.	x		x			x
Cosmetics manufacturing Cosmetics are mixtures of surfactants, oils, and other ingredients. Cosmetics may contain mineral or metallic and nonmetallic additives. In sunscreen, for example, titanium and zinc are used as sun blockers. The color of makeup is determined by the concentrations and ratio of black or red iron oxide, titanium dioxide, and/or zinc oxide. Metal dyes are used in fingernail polish. The uses and concentrations of heavy metals play an important role in cosmetics production and a primary environmental concern at these site types.	x	x				x
Drum recycling Drum recycling facilities clean used drums for reuse. Soil and groundwater contamination at these facilities may result from leaking and spilling of residual chemicals and oils. The variety of chemicals stored in drums makes characterizing potential contaminants difficult. Contaminants could include acids, bases, corrosives, reactive chemicals, flammable materials, and oils. Spillage of paint, paint thinners, and solvents can also contaminate drum recycling facilities.	x	x	x	x	x	x
Dry cleaning The dry cleaning industry provides garment cleaning and related services such as clothes pressing and finishing. The dry cleaning process is physically very similar to the home laundry process except that clothes are washed in dry cleaning solvent instead of water. Dry cleaning sites may become contaminated because of leaks, spills, and improper disposal of solvents.	x	x
Gasoline stations Gasoline stations consist of pump islands, underground storage tanks (UST) for fuel, small storage areas, and service areas (which typically contain either hydraulic lifts or pits) for changing automobile engine oil and other maintenance activities. Gasoline and diesel fuel are transferred from bulk tank trucks to large USTs. Spills at the transfer areas and pumps along with overfilling of and leakage from the USTs are likely sources of contamination at gasoline stations. The primary contaminants of concern at gasoline stations include petroleum hydrocarbons; Benzene, Toluene, Ethylbenzene, and Xylenes (BTEX); and fuel oxygenates such as methyl tertiary butyl ether. Service areas typically have small containers of ethylene glycol (coolant), hydraulic oils, lubricants, automotive batteries (lead and acid), and compressed gas especially acetylene and oxygen cylinders for welding operations. Surface soils may be contaminated because of historical spills or dumping of used lubricants, coolants, and cleaning solvents generated during service activities. Subsurface soils and groundwater, especially in the vicinity of USTs, may also be contaminated because of spills, overfilling, and leaks.		x		x	x	x
Glass manufacturing The glass industry consists of firms engaged in primary glass manufacturing and of others that create products using purchased glass. The primary contaminants associated with glass manufacturing are metals such as lead, arsenic, chromium, and others. Other chemicals used in the glass manufacturing process include hydrofluoric acid, sulfuric acid, and various organic and inorganic solvents. Contaminants may be released to the environment through spills and leaks of raw materials and plant maintenance waste as well as insufficiently treated air emissions.						x
Hospitals Hospitals use a variety of toxic chemicals for diagnostic and therapeutic procedures as well as for cleaning and sterilization. Hazardous materials used include chemotherapy and antineoplastic chemicals, formaldehyde, photographic chemicals, radionuclides, solvents, mercury, anesthetic gases, and other toxic or corrosive chemicals. These substances may be released to the environment through leaks and spills, improper disposal of wastes, and insufficient treatment of wasterwater. In addition, medical waste incinerators may release mercury into the air.	x	x				x
Incinerators An incinerator is an enclosed device that uses controlled flame combustion to thermally break down waste to an ash residue that contains little or no combustible material. Incinerators may accept specific wastes such as municipal solid waste, sewage sludge, or medical waste. Contamination from incinerators may be associated with storage and handling of waste materials prior to incineration as well as disposal of ash and other by-products of the combustion process.			x			x	x
Landfills, municipal and industrial Landfills are now restricted to household garbage, yard wastes, construction debris, and office wastes. Prior to 1970, however, landfills could accept industrial wastes. Therefore, older landfills are more likely to be contaminated with hazardous chemicals. Even modern landfills can contain a host of chemicals from household wastes such as oils, paints, solvents, corrosive cleaners, batteries, and gardening products. Illegal dumping at landfills can also cause serious contamination. Improperly designed landfills have a higher likelihood of surface soil and groundwater contamination and may trap explosive levels of methane gas and hydrogen sulfide in the soil.	x	x	x	x	x	x
Leather manufacturing Leather tanning is the process of converting raw hides or skins into leather. Hides and skins absorb tannic acid and other chemical substances that prevent them from decaying, make them resistant to wetting, and keep them supple and durable. Tanning is essentially the reaction of collagen fibers in the hide with tannins, chromium, alum, or other chemical agents. The most common tanning agents used in the United States are trivalent chromium and vegetable tannins extracted from certain tree barks. Alum, syntans (manmade chemicals), formaldehyde, glutaraldehyde, and heavy oils are also used as tanning agents.					x	x
Machine shops and metal fabrication The fabricated metal product industry has facilities that generally perform two functions: forming metal shapes and performing metal finishing operations, including surface preparation. Metal fabricators produce ferrous and nonferrous metal products. Machining and other metal working may generate waste metals, lubricants, cleaners, and other materials. These substances may impact soil, groundwater, and surface water if they are spilled, leaked, or improperly disposed.	x	x	x			x
Manufactured gas plants and coal gasification Manufactured gas has been produced as a fuel source from coal and oil since the early 1800s. Typically, coal or oil is heated and the resulting volatilized gases are distilled to produce natural gas. Depending on the process design, various by-products can be recovered, including anthracene, benzene, cresol, naphthalene, paraffin, phenol, toluene, and xylenes. Waste products from manufactured gas operations include coal fines, coal tar, cyanide salts, hydrogen sulfide gas, ammonia, and wastewater. Leakage and spillage from storage drums or tanks may contaminate surface and subsurface soils, sediments, surface water, and groundwater.		x		x	x	x
Marine maintenance Marine maintenance industry establishments engage in general painting and repair of ship or boat structures and engines or power plants. Activities may include painting, servicing engines, structural repairs, engine or power plant maintenance, electroplating, air conditioning and refrigeration service, electrical repair, and other cleaning and repair services. A number of chemicals may be used at marine maintenance facilities, including chemical paint strippers, blast media, antifouling paints, solvents, carburetor cleaner, cutting fluids, acids and alkalis, cyanide, heavy metal baths, fiberglass and reinforcement, resins, and mold release agents.	x	x				x
Metal plating and finishing Metal plating operations improve a product’s performance (for example its durability or corrosion resistance) or appearance. Metal components are first cleaned (using solvents and/or water-based detergents) to remove dirt and oils from manufacturing operations. The metal components are subsequently etched, plated, and finished in a series of vats or baths. Common plating metals include cadmium, chromium, copper, gold, nickel, silver, and their alloys. Spillage during plating and cleaning operations and leakage or overflows from storage tanks and process vats may contaminate concrete floors and underlying soils. Groundwater may also be contaminated by heavy metals, cyanide, and solvents.	x	x	x	x		x
Metal recycling and automobile salvage Automobile salvage yards recover usable parts, scrap metal, and other recyclable materials from old or wrecked automobiles. Nonrecyclable materials are stored on site or sent to a municipal landfill. Metal recyclers purchase metal from a variety of sources and sort and process the scrap metal for resale. Metals commonly salvaged by these facilities include iron, steel, copper, brass, and aluminum. Sites may contain non-recyclable wastes and contaminated materials. Contaminated “auto fluff”, a fibrous residue containing plastics, fabrics, and other materials, may be present at sites that perform shredding. Depending on the type of recycling operation conducted at a site, the surrounding soils may be contaminated with heavy metals, asbestos, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) oils, hydraulic fluids, lubricating oils, fuels, and solvents.			x		x	x
Munitions manufacturing and ordnance sites Ordnance sites typically include facilities that manufacture, assemble, store, or dispose of a variety of military munitions such as bombs, shells, grenades, mines, small arms ammunition, and specialty explosives. Potential contaminants in structures and surrounding property include di- and tri-nitro substituted phenols and benzenes, nitroglycerin, metals, ethers, formaldehyde, and ammoniated compounds. Unexploded ordnance (UXO) may be buried along with other waste materials. Groundwater may be contaminated with solvents such as formaldehyde and toluene. Furthermore, because of the age of some facilities, asbestos-containing materials may be found in abandoned buildings and demolition debris.						x	x
Mining There are three general steps in the mining process: extraction, beneficiation, and processing. Extraction of the mineral value from the rock or matrix is the initial step in the operation. Beneficiation is the processing of extracted materials to clean or concentrate the product either for use as a final product or in preparation for further processing. Beneficiation may involve physical (such as milling) or chemical (such as leaching) separation processes or both. Processing is conducted following beneficiation to further extract or refine the material and prepare it for specific uses. Processing may include a variety of operations such as smelting, refining, roasting and digesting. Chemical contamination at mining sites may result from acidic, metal-laden mine drainage. Spilled, leaked, or improperly disposed of petroleum, lubricants, and other industrial chemicals may also result in site contamination.	x				x	x
Painting and automobile body repair Paint shops and automobile body repair shops paint various plastic and metal products and fix truck and automobile body parts. Damaged automobile body parts are replaced or repaired with fillers and are then sanded, primed, and painted. The shops may use cutting torches, welding equipment, solvents and cleaners, fiberglass, various polymers and epoxy compounds, and sand or grit blasting. Gasoline and diesel from vehicle fuel tanks, solvents, cleaners, acids, and paints may be leaked or spilled, contaminating soils and groundwater. Typical contaminants include toluene, acetone, perchloroethylene, xylene, gasoline and diesel fuel, carbon tetrachloride, and hydrochloric and phosphoric acids.	x	x			x	x
Pesticide manufacturing and use A pesticide is any substance or mixture of substances intended for preventing, destroying, repelling, or mitigating any pest. The term pesticide also applies to herbicides, fungicides, and various other substances used to control pests. Spillage, leakage, and improper storage or disposal of pesticides may result in their release to the environment. Sites may also be contaminated with properly applied but persistent pesticides. Because of the wide variety of pesticides and applications, facilities manufacturing or using pesticides may be contaminated with a broad range of chemicals.	x	x	x	x	x	x
Petroleum refining and reuse Oil production facilities consist of oil drilling, refining, storage, transfer, transport, and recycling facilities. Typical materials present at these facilities include crude, fuel, and motor oils as well as waste oils. Production processes at these facilities may contaminate soils with sludges, acids, and waste oil additives as well as co-contaminants such as PCBs when spills, leaks or improper disposal practices occur. In some cases,disposal pits may contain thick tarry sludges with very high pH values. Groundwater and deeper soil may be contaminated with metals and lighter oil fractions such as BTEX.					x	x
Pharmaceutical manufacturing The pharmaceutical industry manufactures bulk pharmaceutical intermediates and active ingredients, that are further processed into finished products. Chemicals used in the manufacturing process vary according to the desired product and the process type. Equipment must be thoroughly cleaned between processing operations for different products. VOCs are used as solvents at various stages of the manufacturing process. Because of the purity required for products, spent solvent is not usually reused in pharmaceutical manufacturing. It may be sold for nonpharmaceutical use or destroyed via incineration. The ten contaminants most commonly discharged in pharmaceutical wastewater are methanol; ethanol; acetone; isopropanol; acetic acid; methylene chloride; formic acid; ammonium hydroxide; N,N-dimethylacetamide and toluene.	x	x				x
Photographic film manufacturing and development Photographic film is coated with an emulsion containing light-sensitive silver halide crystals. Once film has been exposed, it must go through a series of chemical processes to bring out the images. Various chemicals are used as developers and fixing solutions, including hydroquinone, catechols, aminophenols, acetic acid, muriatic (hydrochloric) acid, and sodium or ammonium thiosulfate. Silver solutions are often generated during the photographic development processes.	x	x		x		x
Plastic manufacturing Almost all plastics are made from petroleum. Plastics are polymers, which are very long chains of molecules that consist of subunits (monomers) linked together by chemical bonds. Monomers of petrochemical plastics are not typically biodegradable. Wastes generated by the industry include polymers, phthalates, cadmium, solvents, resins, chemical additives, and VOCs.	x	x		x		x
Printing and ink manufacturing The printing industry consists of firms engaged in printing using one or more common processes such as lithography, letterpress, flexography, gravure, and screen printing. Contamination may result from spills, leaks, and improper disposal of excess chemicals and wastes, including ink constituents such as metals, cleaners, and solvents used during printing and production processes.	x	x			x	x
Railroad yards Railroad yards may consist of any combination of track and switching areas, engine maintenance buildings, engine fueling areas, bulk and container storage and transfer stations, and storage areas for materials used in track and engine maintenance. Materials used at railroad yards include diesel fuel, paint, solvents and degreasing agents, PCB oils, and creosote. Spills, leaks, or dumping of these compounds may contaminate soil and groundwater. Chemical spills and leaks during loading and unloading of tanker and freight cars can also contaminate a railroads yard. Because of the variety of chemicals used at and transported through railroad yards, virtually any type of chemical contamination could be present.	x	x	x	x	x	x
Research and educational institutions Academic institutions are often similar to small cities, as they may have research laboratories, automobile repair facilities, power plants, wastewater treatment plants, hazardous waste management and trash disposal activities, asbestos management activities, drinking water supply facilities, grounds maintenance activities and incineration facilities. Educational institutions typically generate small quantities of a variety of wastes, including inorganic acids, organic solvents, metals and metal dust, photographic waste, waste oil, paint, heavy metals, and pesticides.	x	x	x			x
Semiconductor manufacturing >The semiconductor manufacturing industry is a subset of the electronics manufacturing industry and produces integrated circuits or “chips.” Contamination on semiconductor chips is one of the primary reasons that they fail; therefore, chips are cleaned before and after many of the manufacturing steps. Chemicals used in the manufacturing process include various acids, ethylene glycol, hydroxide solutions, halogen gases, fluorocarbons, chlorine, and various organic solvents.	x	x				x
Smelter operations The primary use of smelting is to produce iron and steel from iron ore. Smelting is also used to extract copper and other base metals from raw ores. Contamination from smelting operations often takes the form of deposition of airborne metals, asbestos, and sulfur compounds in areas surrounding smelters. Contamination may also result from improper storage and disposal of raw ores or by-product slag.						x
Underground storage tanks A UST is a tank and any underground piping connected to a tank where at least 10 percent of the combined volume is under the ground. USTs often contain petroleum products, gasoline, or other chemicals. Faulty installation or inadequate operating and maintenance procedures can cause USTs to release their contents into the environment. The greatest potential hazard from leaking USTs is that petroleum fuels, fuel additives, or other hazardous substances can seep into soil and contaminate groundwater.	x	x			x	x
Vehicle maintenance Vehicle maintenance involves handling and managing a wide variety of materials and wastes, including oils, batteries, refrigerants, antifreeze, solvents, asbestos, and fuels. Improper management and disposal of wastes as well as leaks from fuel and waste storage containers may result in contamination of vehicle maintenance facilities.	x	x			x	x
Wood preservation Wood preservation sites typically consist of wood preparation facilities, chemical storage tanks, chemical treatment areas (including high-pressure vessels in many cases), drip or drying areas, and wood storage areas. Wood is treated with preservative chemicals either by dipping the wood into a chemical bath or by injecting chemicals into the wood under pressure. Storage tanks at wood preservation sites could contain creosote, pentachlorophenol, or chrome-copperarsenate (CCA) solutions for wood treatment. These chemicals could enter the environment if the tanks were overfilled or leaked. Contaminated water squeezed from wood during processing and retort sludge may have spilled on the ground, causing soil and ground water contamination. As treated wood is transferred from the treatment area to the drying area, chemicals may drip onto soil and contaminate the soil and groundwater. Likewise, drippage in drying areas, especially in older operations where pressure treatment may not have been used, could result in soil contamination. Runoff from site could also contaminate nearby surface waters.		x	x	x	x	x
Wood pulp and paper manufacturing The pulp and paper industry produces commodity grades of wood pulp, printing and writing paper, sanitary tissue, industrial-type paper, containerboard, and boxboard using cellulose fiber from timber or purchased or recycled fibers. The two steps involved are pulping and paper or paperboard manufacturing. Pulping is the process of dissolving wood chips into individual fibers using chemical, semichemical, or mechanical methods. Pulping is the major source of environmental impacts in the industry. Chlorinated organic compounds in pulp plant wastewater sludge are of particular concern because of their tendency to partition from effluent to solids. Improper treatment or disposal of wastes may result in contamination being released to the environment. Spills and leaks of process and waste chemicals are other common sources of contamination at pulp mills. Air emissions are also problematic at pulp mills, which are typically noted for their unpleasant odors.	x		x

What Technologies May Be Used to Investigate Contamination at Brownfields Sites?

Various analytical technologies may be used to investigate contamination at brownfields sites. Table A-2 contains information on analytical technologies that are available for investigating the contaminant groups presented in Table A-1.

What Technologies May Be Used to Remediate at Brownfields Sites?

Various treatment technologies may be used to remediate contamination at brownfields sites. Table A-3 contains information on treatment technologies that are available for remediating the contaminants presented in Table A-1. Descriptions of the remedial technologies are included at the end of this guide in What Are the Treatment Technologies Identified in Table A-3?

Table A-3. Technologies for Treating Contaminants Found at Brownfields Sites

Notes:
S and G indicate the media that can be treated using each technology type
S = Soils, sediments, and sludges
G = Groundwater, leachate, and surface water

What Are the Contaminant Groups Presented in Tables A-1, A-2, and A-3?

The following general contaminant groups are included in Tables A-1, A-2, and A-3:

Descriptions of the seven contaminant groups are included below to provide supplemental information about the characteristics and specific constituents of the groups.

Halogenated VOCs

VOCs are hydrocarbon compounds that evaporate readily at room temperature A halogenated VOC is a VOC that has a halogen (fluorine, chlorine, bromine, or iodine) attached to it. Locations where halogenated VOCs may be found include burn pits, chemical manufacturing plants and disposal areas, contaminated marine sediments, disposal wells and leach fields, electroplating and metal finishing shops, firefighting training areas, hangars and aircraft maintenance areas, landfills and burial pits, leaking storage tanks, radioactive and mixed waste disposal areas, oxidation ponds and lagoons, dry cleaning shops, grain storage sites, paint stripping and spray booth areas, pesticide and herbicide mixing areas, solvent degreasing areas, surface impoundments, and vehicle maintenance areas. Typical halogenated VOCs encountered at many sites include those listed below.

Nonhalogenated VOCs

A nonhalogenated VOC is a VOC that does not have a halogen (fluorine, chlorine, bromine, or iodine) attached to it. Locations where nonhalogenated VOCs may be found include burn pits, chemical manufacturing plants and disposal areas, contaminated marine sediments, disposal wells and leach fields, electroplating and metal finishing shops, firefighting training areas, hangars and aircraft maintenance areas, landfills and burial pits, leaking storage tanks, radioactive and mixed waste disposal areas, oxidation ponds and lagoons, paint stripping and spray booth areas, pesticide and herbicide mixing areas, solvent degreasing areas, surface impoundments, and vehicle maintenance areas. Typical nonhalogenated VOCs (excluding fuels, BTEX, and gas-phase contaminants) encountered at many sites include those listed below:

Halogenated SVOCs

SVOCs are hydrocarbon compounds with boiling points greater than 200ºC. A halogenated SVOC is an SVOC that has a halogen (fluorine, chlorine, bromine, or iodine) attached to it. Locations where halogenated SVOCs may be found include burn pits and other combustion sources, chemical manufacturing plants and disposal areas, contaminated marine sediments, disposal wells and leach fields, electroplating and metal finishing shops, firefighting training areas, hangars and aircraft maintenance areas, landfills and burial pits, leaking storage tanks, radioactive and mixed waste disposal areas, oxidation ponds and lagoons, dry cleaning shops, grain storage sites, pesticide and herbicide mixing areas, solvent degreasing areas, surface impoundments, vehicle maintenance areas and wood preservation sites. Typical halogenated SVOCs (excluding fuels and explosives) encountered at many sites include those listed below:

Pesticides are a subgroup of halogenated SVOCs. Typical pesticides encountered at many sites include those listed below.

Nonhalogenated SVOCs

A nonhalogenated SVOC is an SVOC that does not have a halogen (fluorine, chlorine, bromine, or iodine) attached to it. Locations where nonhalogenated SVOCs may be found include burn pits, chemical manufacturing plants and disposal areas, contaminated marine sediments, disposal wells and leach fields, electroplating and metal finishing shops, firefighting training areas, hangars and aircraft maintenance areas, landfills and burial pits, leaking storage tanks, radioactive and mixed waste disposal areas, oxidation ponds and lagoons, pesticide and herbicide mixing areas, solvent degreasing areas, surface impoundments, and vehicle maintenance areas and wood preservation sites. Typical nonhalogenated SVOCs (excluding fuels and explosives) encountered at many sites include those listed below: