Blog & Recent Projects

Did you know that there are nearly 60,000 confirmed underground storage tank (UST) releases in the United States? Each year, over 4,000 new releases are reported. 

Underground Storage Tanks (USTs) present a significant challenge. These hidden containers, often filled with hazardous substances like petroleum, lurk beneath our feet, potentially threatening the quality of soil and water upon which life depends. As we move further into an era where sustainability is not just preferred but essential, integrating advanced technological practices with environmental protection in UST management has become a paramount concern. This article delves into the complexities of managing USTs sustainably, drawing on recent research to highlight the impact, innovative solutions, and benefits of adopting sustainable practices in UST management.

Underground Storage Tanks (USTs) are ubiquitous yet often overlooked components of our modern infrastructure. Predominantly used for storing petroleum and hazardous substances, USTs, when leaking, pose a significant environmental threat. The issue extends beyond spills and contaminations; it's a silent crisis that threatens our water sources, ecosystems, and public health. This blog post delves deep into the challenges posed by leaking USTs, exploring the environmental risks, the complexities of managing such leaks, and the innovative solutions being pioneered in the field.

Solving Persistent UST Site Pollution Through Precision Mapping and Targeted Remediation: A COLUMBIA Technologies Case Study

Background Story

COLUMBIA Technologies do Brasil, Ltda. Continues to Build Relationships in Latin America at the V International Congress on Subsurface Environment (CIMAS 2017) 

SÃO PAULO, BRASIL – October 30, 2017 – COLUMBIA Technologies do Brasil, Ltda,  a leading environmental assessment and analysis firm in Brasil will be in attendance at the V Congresso Internacional de Meio Ambiente Subterrâneo in São Paulo, Brasil.  COLUMBIA Technologies do Brasil provides high-resolution site characterization assessments to aid property owners in reducing the risk, uncertainty and cost of contaminated land investigation and remediation. COLUMBIA will attend with their joint venture partner, Aragon Perfurações e Sondagens, a services firm offering the largest array of advanced environmental drilling equipment in Brasil.

COLUMBIA’s CEO, John Sohl, and the Aragon staff will be available to answer questions regarding advanced site characterization technologies and strategies, the latest rock coring direct push equipment, and SmartData Solutions®. 

International Seminar Relasc-Nicole Management of Sites Contaminated by Hydrocarbons

COLUMBIA Technologies, LLC, a veteran-owned small business provider of high-resolution site characterization services, and our Brazilan subsidiary, COLUMBIA Technologies do Brasil, Ltda. are pleased to support the  International Seminar Relasc-Nicole Management of Sites Contaminated by Hydrocarbons. COLUMBIA's co-founder, Mr. John Sohl, will provide recent lessons learned in LNAPL Mobility, Recoverability, and How to Use High-Resolution.   In addition, John will support a Workshop on Conceptual Site Model Development on Friday, 02 June.   The seminar and workshop will take place in Lima, Peru 31 May through 02 June.  

With 30-years of experience in strategic planning, technical management, and laboratory supervision with the U.S. Navy,  Gayle Goff, joins the COLUMBIA Technologies team in the role of Quality Assurance Manager. As our Quality Assurance Manager, Gayle is responsible for conducting self-assessments, analyzing quality performance metrics, and the execution of improvements of quality programs. During her time overseeing Safety and Occupational Health programs for hospitals, clinics, research laboratories and educational facilities worldwide, Gayle led key initiatives to streamline self-assessments, set performance metrics, and improve quality of programs in a well-focused, consistent, systematic and quantifiable manner.

 24th National Tanks Conference & Expo organized by 
NEIWPCC, EPA, ASTSWMO, and CDLE in Denver, CO on September 16-18, 2013

COLUMBIA Technologies is pleased to announce our support for the upcoming 24th National Tanks Conference in Denver, CO with two presentations and an exhibit booth.

On Sunday, September 15, 2013, our CEO, John Sohl and Vista GeoScience's President, John Fontana, will present a pre-conference workshop Improved In-Situ Remediation using Advanced High Resolution Site Characterization Tools for Remedial Design Characterization and Advanced Injection Technologies from 1:00 - 5:00 PM.

On Monday, September 16, 2013, our CEO, John Sohl, will present Improving LUST Management through High Resolution Data on LNAPL and Permeability to Close Those Pesky Sites during the Advanced LNAPL Assessment I session from 1:30 - 3:00 PM.

COLUMBIA staff will be present at the 24th National Tanks Conference & Expo and will be pleased to meet you at Booth 219. If you would like to organize a meeting in advance, please contact Dov Hoffman at (888) 344-2704 ext. 207 or dhoffman@columbiatechnologies.com.

 On Wednesday, June 12, 2013, our CEO, John Sohl will present Leveraging Advanced High-Resolution Site Characterization Best Practices to Plan, Target, and Enhance Bioremediation Efforts during the Innovative and Developing Processes and Protocols platform session of the Methodologies for Planning and Evaluating Bioremediation track. This year, the Second International Symposium on Bioremediation and Sustainable Environmental Technologies will be conducted June 10-13, at the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront Hotel in Jacksonville, FL. The Symposium is organized and presented by Battelle, and conference sponsors are other organizations active in site investigation and remediation.

For the remediation-focused site investigation professional, we believe that hydraulic permeability is no longer an option, but a requirement. As this post will outline, hydraulic permeability is key to identifying contaminant transport zones at LNAPL and DNAPL sites for remediation-focused site investigations. Hydraulic permeability data, which is collected with a Hydraulic Profiling Tool (HPT), enables decision makers to understand contaminant mobility and migration. Today, responsible parties and involved stakeholders are looking for more than just lab results from samples and screened well intervals, and are instead looking for data which enables them to minimize risk, reduce costs, and enhance remediation design efforts.

Below is an example of an HPT log from a site with multiple contaminants at concentrations up to and including NAPL. The combined Membrane Interface Probe-Hydraulic Profiling Tool (MiHpt) was used to delineate the horizontal and vertical extent of contamination and collect hydraulic permeability data simultaneously.

Key takeaways from the log included above: