FIRE TRAINING AREA NO.4
FT-04 
 

 
BACKGROUND
Fire Training Area Number 4 (FT-04) is located near the southeast corner of Andrews Air Force Base, and was used as a fire training area from 1973 to 1990 where waste petroleum hydrocarbons and flammable solvents were released into a bermed area and ignited, then extinguished. All liquids then flowed through an oil-water separator and into a leaching pond. 

Much of the contaminated source material was removed from the site during the demolition and excavation of the site performed in 1992. A groundwater remediation system that used vacuum enhanced product recovery was installed as a pilot study in 1996 under an Interim Remedial Action Plan. The system was shut down in September 2000 with regulatory/ partnering group concurrence after free phase petroleum product had been reduced to a periodic sheen. 

A Treatability Study was conducted in 2004 to evaluate the possibility of using Hydrogen Release Compound (HRC) to remediate the solvent contaminated groundwater at the site. HRC stimulates the microbial communities that consume the carbon tetrachloride. The proposed plan was implemented according to the Record of Decision (ROD) that was signed in November 2005. Groundwater monitoring continues semi-annually to track the restoration progress. The Air Force is enforcing institutional controls to prevent the risk of exposure to human health. 

RISK DRIVERS
Subsurface soils do not pose a risk to human health. Groundwater at the site is impacted with benzene, carbon tetrachloride, arsenic and manganese which pose an unacceptable risk to human health. This groundwater migrates towards the Piscataway Creek, located over 2000 feet away. 

Land Use (current/future): Airfield Operations 

PERFORMANCE-BASED APPROACH
The groundwater monitoring and statistical evaluation will continue at the site to verify the efficiency of the in-situ groundwater remediation by HRC injection. This site is managed under the Environmental Restoration Program's base-wide operations and maintenance contract. This streamlines subsequent phases of the process and reduces costs.

CHALLENGES
There is a Homeland Defense initiative for the construction of new Air National Guard 113th Air Sovereignty Alert (ASA) Facility on this site. Construction planning is underway, and will soon destroy the inoperable groundwater treatment system and a number of the monitoring wells currently included in the long-term groundwater monitoring network for the site. Although the wells will be replaced, there will be a discontinuity in the data being gathered, posing a statistical challenge for an adequate five year review of the site. 

The proposed schedule for this site is: