A2Z received a call to respond to a
hydraulic oil spill at Andrews Air Force Base in Camp Springs,
Maryland. The oil was spilled on the roadway and on two other
places in a grassy area. A2Z responded with a five man crew,
vacuum truck, a rolloff truck with a roll-off box containing
a mini excavator and a pressure washer unit. The first crew
to arrive began sweeping up sand that had been placed on the
oil by local response. The second crew brought the pressure
washer. Pictures were taken to document clean up.
A degreaser was applied to the road
surface to help with the removal of the oil on the roadway
and was then pressure washed. The vacuum truck was set up to
recover the oily wash water. Temporary dykes were set up using
bricks, lumber and leaves found on site. All debris from the
dykes was disposed of in the roll-off container along with
the contaminated soil. As the roadway began to dry, it became
apparent that the wash was effective in removing the hydraulic
oil from the roadway. The soil clean up was verified using
a PID (Photo-Ionization-Detector). This instrument displays
total organic content in parts per million of air/contaminant.
Holes were driven in the ground to create voids so that the
PID could detect "soil gases". This instrument is sensitive
enough to detect organic decay from vegetables rotting. The
instrument showed 0 ppm difference between the spill area and
a "control" area where normal background organics could be
measured.
After testing, all equipment was packed
up and the area was again checked to assure it was clean. After
receiving approval for disposal, the soil was transported by
an A2Z roll-off truck to a landfill in Pennsylvania that is
permitted to landfill low content oily soil and debris.
