Abstract

Soil gas was assessed for contaminants in the building 310 underground storage tank area adjacent to the Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Center at Ft. Gordon, Georgia, from October 2010 to September 2011. The assessment, which also included the detection of organic compounds in soil gas, provides environmental contamination data to Fort Gordon personnel pursuant to requirements of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act Part B Hazardous Waste Permit process. The study was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of the Army Environmental and Natural Resources Management Office of the U.S. Army Signal Center and Fort Gordon.

Soil-gas samplers were deployed below land surface at 37 locations in the building 310 underground storage tank area. Soil-gas samplers were deployed in a grid pattern near the storage tank area as well as downslope of the tank area in the direction of groundwater flow toward an unnamed tributary to Butler Creek. Total petroleum hydrocarbons were detected in 35 of the 37 soil-gas samplers at levels above the method detection level, and the combined mass of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and total xylenes were detected above their detection levels in 8 of the 37 samplers. In addition, the combined masses of undecane, tridecane, and pentadecane were detected at or above their method detection levels in 9 of the 37 samplers. Other volatile organic compounds detected above their respective method detection levels were chloroform, 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, and perchloroethylene. In addition, naphthalene, 2-methyl naphthalene, and 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene were detected below the method detection levels, but above the nondetection level.

First posted September 20, 2012