BLOOMFIELD, CT, Nov. 29, 2007 -- VeruTEK Technologies Inc. announced on Nov. 14 that the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) has accepted the Surfactant-Enhanced In Situ Chemical Oxidation (S-ISCO™) Pilot Test Report and approved the use of S-ISCO™, an innovative, green remediation technology, at a former Manufactured Gas Plant site in New York. The technology can be used to safely clean up coal tar and related contaminants in soils and groundwater beneath buildings without having to move residents.
The Third-Party Pilot Test Report conducted in accordance with a NYSDEC work plan evaluating the effectiveness of S-ISCO™ showed that "...complete or near complete remediation..." can be achieved where S-ISCO™ is in contact with MGP impacted soils. S-ISCO™ is the first of a line of Coelution Technologies™ developed by VeruTEK that uses biodegradable, food-grade plant extracts (VeruSOL™), such as coconut oils, castor oils and soybean oils, and oxidants to safely destroy contaminants in soil and groundwater.
John Collins, Ph.D., CEO & President of VeruTEK Technologies, commented, "Green remediation technologies are the wave of the future for cleaning up manufactured gas plants and other large contaminated sites. This approval is further validation of the effectiveness of S-ISCO™ and our ability to use these breakthrough green remediation technologies to clean up both simple and complex contaminated sites."
Collins further added, "this is a good day for both the affected communities and the industry alike. Subsurface coal tar can now be treated and removed. S-ISCO™ and other green remediation technologies provide a low-cost and safe answer to soil and groundwater contamination with no impact to the community."
The conclusions of the Pilot Test study, as set forth in the final pilot test report (October 2007), note the following:
• S-ISCO™ mixtures targeted soil zones and contaminants were destroyed through a majority of the Pilot Test Area.
• The Pilot Test demonstrated that S-ISCO™ can be used to treat the MGP-related contaminants (for example, tar-saturated soils, tar blebs and tar-coated lenses) beneath buildings and other potential obstructions (for example, railroad tracks).
• The Pilot Test demonstrated that S-ISCO™ can be safely implemented to treat subsurface MGP-derived contamination at the test site.
VeruTEK's green remediation technologies can be applied to remedy most former Manufactured Gas Plant sites. According to Jim Cummings of the EPA's Technology Assessment Office, there are as many as 15,000 contaminated sites of former coalburning factories nationwide, and more than a quarter-million worldwide.
"Many of the hazardous waste sites have contamination beneath buildings or roads or at a depth that makes excavation costs prohibitive," Cummings said. "The EPA does not endorse particular technology vendors; nevertheless, VeruTEK seems to be among the companies which are on the right track."
VeruTEK provides proprietary, patent-pending, green remediation solutions for cleaning up the environment.
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