Concept Of Remediation Research Articles

From Norms to Facts: The Realization of Rights in Common and Civil Private Law

Every legal system that ties judicial decision making to a body of preconceived norms has to face the tension between the normative formulation of the ideal and its approximation in social reality. In the parlance of the common law, it is, more concretely, the remedy that bridges the gap between the ideal and the real, or, rather, between norms and facts. In the common law world—particularly in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth—a lively discourse has developed around the question of how rights relate to remedies. To the civilian legal scholar—used to thinking within a framework that strictly categorizes terms like substance and procedure, subjective right, action, and execution—the concept of remedy remains a mystery. The lack of “remedy” in the vocabulary of the civil law is more than just a matter of attaching different labels to functional equivalents, it is the expression of a different way of thinking about law. Only if a legal system is capable of satisfactorily transposing the abstract discourse of the law into social reality does the legal machinery fulfill its purpose: due to the pivotal importance of this translational process, the way it is cast in legal concepts thus allows for an insight into the deep structure of a legal culture, and, convergence notwithstanding, the remaining epistemological differences between the legal traditions of the West. A mixed jurisdiction must reflect upon these differences in order to understand its own condition and to define its future course.

From (listening to) moving mirrors to (listening through/in) mirrors in motion - Srdjan Hofman: Looking at the Mirrors of Anish Kapoor for two amplified harps and Logic Pro software

The paper analyses and interprets Srđan Hofman's electroacoustic piece Looking at the Mirrors of Anish Kapoor for two amplified harps and Logic Pro software (2010). This interpretation is based upon the concept of remediation, introduced by Bolter and Grusin in 1999 and further developed by Lev Manovitch (2001) as a way of understanding the co-existence and interdependence of old and new media. This concept enables further exploration of the issues raised by the Hofman's piece, since it was inspired by Anish Kapoor's installation Mirrors (Guggenheim Museum - Bilbao, 2010), one of them being possible remediation of visual into acoustic.

“Second Hand Images”: On Art’s Surrogate Means and Media—Introduction

In this essay I explore the mediation of art through reproductions and introduce a special issue, dedicated to the late Helene E. Roberts, former editor and senior editor of Visual Resources and a pioneer in the study of reproductions and their importance in shaping our visual experiences. This is the first of two issues honoring Roberts. Part two will be published in 2011. Drawing on Roberts’ notion of secondhand images and the vital role played by reproductions in the mid‐nineteenth century, I survey some of the scholarship on reproductions in the press and the mediations of photography as part of the larger understanding of the functions, uses, and receptions of images to which Roberts contributed. Among my references are ideas such as Marshall McLuhan’s medium as the message, the work of scholars of print culture, Jean Baudrillard’s simulacrum, John Fiske’s notions of incorporation and excorporation, Jay Bolton and Richard Grusin’s concept of remediation, and Régis Debray’s mediology.

Evaluation of Combined Direct‐Push Methods Used for Aquifer Model Generation

Most established methods to characterize aquifer structure and hydraulic conductivities of hydrostratigraphical units are not capable of delivering sufficient information in the spatial resolution that is desired for sophisticated numerical contaminant transport modeling and adapted remediation design. With hydraulic investigation methods based on the direct-push (DP) technology such as DP slug tests, DP injection logging, and the hydraulic profiling tool, it is possible to rapidly delineate hydrogeological structures and estimate their hydraulic conductivity in shallow unconsolidated aquifers without the need for wells. A combined application of these tools was used for the investigation of a contaminated German refinery site and for the setup of hydraulic aquifer models. The quality of DP investigation and the models was evaluated by comparisons of tracer transport simulations using these models and measured breakthroughs of two natural gradient tracer tests. Model scenarios considering the information of all tools together showed good reproduction of the measured breakthroughs, indicating the suitability of the approach and a minor impact of potential technical limitations. Using the DP slug tests alone yielded significantly higher deviations for the determined hydraulic conductivities compared to considering two or three of the tools. Realistic aquifer models developed on basis of such combined DP investigation approaches can help optimize remediation concepts or identify flow regimes for aquifers with a complex structure.

Editor's perspective—Sustainable remediation gains momentum as SURF publishes groundbreaking white paper

In this issue of Remediation, the entire publication is dedicated to a single white paper, “Integrating Sustainable Principles, Practices, and Metrics Into Remediation Projects,” written by the U.S. Sustainable Remediation Forum, or “SURF.” SURF is an energetic group of volunteers who are passionate about the concept of sustainable remediation. Nearly one-quarter of SURF’s almost 200 members contributed to the white paper—a total of 50 authors. The collaborative effort took a significant amount of time due to the number of contributors, but the end product is a fine opinion piece that will certainly help shape the future of sustainable remediation. The SURF group, which was founded in 2006, has the following mission statement:

Geomicrobiology of Sulfidic Mine Dumps: A Short Review

The geomicrobiology of sulfidic mine dumps is reviewed. More than 30 microbiological studies of sulfidic mine dumps have been published. Mainly culturing approaches such as most probable number (MPN) or agar plates were used to study the microbial communities. More recently, molecular biological techniques such as FISH, CARD-FISH, Q-PCR, T-RFLP, DGGE, or cloning have been applied to quantify microorganisms and to investigate the microbial diversity. Aerobic Fe(II)- and sulfur compound oxidizing microorganisms oxidize pyrite, pyrrhotite and other metal sulfides and play an important role in the formation of acid mine drainage (AMD). Anaerobic microorganisms such as Fe(III)-reducing microorganisms dissolve Fe(III)(hydr)oxides and may thereby release adsorbed or precipitated metals. Sulfate-reducing microorganisms precipitate and immobilize metals. In addition to the microbial communities several biogeochemical processes have been analyzed in mine dumps. Pyrite or pyrrhotite oxidation rates have been measured by different techniques: Column experiments, humidity cells, microcalorimetry, or oxygen consumption measurements. Analyses of stable isotopes of iron, oxygen and sulfur have yielded valuable information on biogeochemical reactions. The microbiology and the biogeochemical processes in sulfidic mine dumps have to be understood for control and prevention of AMD generation and to provide different possibilities for remediation concepts. Today, remediation measures, e.g. under water storage of the waste or covering of the dumps, focus on the inhibition of pyrite oxidation to keep the toxic compounds inside the mine waste dumps. As an alternative to the inhibition of pyrite oxidation, metals which also have economic value could be extracted from mine dumps by the application of different metal extraction technologies including bioleaching.

AhR agonist and genotoxicant bioavailability in a PAH-contaminated soil undergoing biological treatment

Degradation of the 16 US EPA priority PAHs in soil subjected to bioremediation is often achieved. However, the PAH loss is not always followed by a reduction in soil toxicity. For instance, bioanalytical testing of such soil using the chemical-activated luciferase gene expression (CALUX) assay, measuring the combined effect of all Ah receptor (AhR) activating compounds, occasionally indicates that the loss of PAHs does not correlate with the loss of Ah receptor-active compounds in the soil. In addition, standard PAH analysis does not address the issue of total toxicant bioavailability in bioremediated soil. To address these questions, we have used the CALUX AhR agonist bioassay and the Comet genotoxicity bioassay with RTL-W1 cells to evaluate the toxic potential of different extracts from a PAH-contaminated soil undergoing large-scale bioremediation. The extracts were also chemically analyzed for PAH16 and PCDD/PCDF. Soil sampled on five occasions between day 0 and day 274 of biological treatment was shaken with n-butanol with vortex mixing at room temperature to determine the bioavailable fraction of contaminants. To establish total concentrations, parts of the same samples were extracted using an accelerated solvent extractor (ASE) with toluene at 100 degrees C. The extracts were tested as inducers of AhR-dependent luciferase activity in the CALUX assay and for DNA breakage potential in the Comet bioassay. The chemical analysis of the toluene extracts indicated slow degradation rates and the CALUX assay indicated high levels of AhR agonists in the same extracts. Compared to day 0, the bioavailable fractions showed no decrease in AhR agonist activity during the treatment but rather an up-going trend, which was supported by increasing levels of PAHs and an increased effect in the Comet bioassay after 274 days. The bio-TEQs calculated using the CALUX assay were higher than the TEQs calculated from chemical analysis in both extracts, indicating that there are additional toxic PAHs in both extracts that are not included in the chemically derived TEQ. The response in the CALUX and the Comet bioassays as well as the chemical analysis indicate that the soil might be more toxic to organisms living in soil after 274 days of treatment than in the untreated soil, due to the release of previously sorbed PAHs and possibly also metabolic formation of novel toxicants. Our results put focus on the issue of slow degradation rates and bioavailability of PAHs during large-scale bioremediation treatments. The release of sorbed PAHs at the investigated PAH-contaminated site seemed to be faster than the degradation rate, which demonstrates the importance of considering the bioavailable fraction of contaminants during a bioremediation process. It has to be ensured that soft remediation methods like biodegradation or the natural remediation approach do not result in the mobilization of toxic compounds including more mobile degradation products. For PAH-contaminated sites this cannot be assured merely by monitoring the 16 target PAHs. The combined use of a battery of biotests for different types of PAH effects such as the CALUX and the Comet assay together with bioavailability extraction methods may be a useful screening tool of bioremediation processes of PAH-contaminated soil and contribute to a more accurate risk assessment. If the bioremediation causes a release of bound PAHs that are left undegraded in an easily extracted fraction, the soil may be more toxic to organisms living in the soil as a result of the treatment. A prolonged treatment time may be one way to reduce the risk of remaining mobile PAHs. In critical cases, the remediation concept might have to be changed to ex situ remediation methods.

Re-mediating the University: Learning through Sociocritical Literacies

The article provides a framework for the development of robust learning ecologies organized around the cultural historical concept of “re-mediation”. In contrast to traditional “remedial” approaches to students from nondominant communities, re-mediation involves a transformation of the learning ecology, including a shift in the way tools and forms of assistance function to incite and facilitate learning. This article elaborates the notion of “re-mediation” in redesigning contexts for learning in which all students can be “smart” through the conscious and strategic use of a range of theoretic and material tools. The key concepts of re-mediation, a historicizing education, and sociocritical literacies are discussed in the context of two cases that illustrate two learning ecologies developed for students historically excluded from robust learning and higher education. A programme that was antecedent to the design of the current project addressed in this special issue is elaborated to emphasize the importance of attending to the historical and conceptual trails of work with students from nondominant communities.

Cosmic Heat Emission concept to 'stop' global warming

Global warming, over the last few decades, has become one of the most debated challenges facing society. There have been very few innovative remedies to combat this phenomenon which could lead to ecological disaster. A remedial concept is proposed to 'stop' or at least minimise, global warming and cool Earth. This can be achieved by focusing on the primary heat balance between human activities' generated heat and equivalent Cosmic Heat Emission. The process relates to putting Heat Reflecting Sheets on arid areas, thus combining anti-desertification measures with comparatively minimal costs involved as well as relatively quick realisation and positive results. A feasibility study based on this notion would provide a warning and a back-up move against radical actions that might be detrimental for the future of planet Earth and its sustainability.

Remediation: A closer look in an educational context

Educators utilize various approaches when implementing the concept of remediation in associate degree programs of nursing. Consequently, many forms of remediation are used throughout a student's academic progression. In light of the declining National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurse pass rates, a standardized definition of remediation is needed. This article will analyze the concept of remediation utilizing the Wilsonian technique of concept analysis, rendering a definition of remediation and recommendations for its use.

Pilot plant experiences using physical and biological treatment steps for the remediation of groundwater from a former MGP site

The production of manufactured gas at a site in Vienna, Austria led to the contamination of soil and groundwater with various pollutants including PAHs, hydrocarbons, phenols, BTEX, and cyanide. The site needs to be remediated to alleviate potential impacts to the environment. The chosen remediation concept includes the excavation of the core contaminated site and the setup of a hydraulic barrier to protect the surrounding aquifer. The extracted groundwater will be treated on-site. To design the foreseen pump-and-treat system, a pilot-scale plant was built and operated for 6 months. The scope of the present study was to test the effectiveness of different process steps, which included an aerated sedimentation basin, a submerged fixed film reactor (SFFR), a multi-media filter, and an activated carbon filter. The hydraulic retention time (HRT) was 7.0 h during normal flow conditions and 3.5 h during high flow conditions. The treatment system was effective in reducing the various organic and inorganic pollutants in the pumped groundwater. However, it was also demonstrated that appropriate pre-treatment was essential to overcome problems with clogging due to precipitation of tar and sulfur compounds. The reduction of the typical contaminants, PAHs and BTEX, was more than 99.8%. All water quality parameters after treatment were below the Austrian legal requirements for discharge into public water bodies.

Structure and Solvent Properties of Microemulsions

A microscale laboratory experiment to investigate the formation and utility of microemulsions is described. Microemulsions are technologically important fluids that can reduce the use of toxic organic solvents. In the experiment, students prepare a microemulsion and compare the solubility of sudan III dye in the microemulsion and in dodecane. They learn how to prepare standards, make absorbance measurements, plot calibration curves, and calculate the concentration of saturated solutions using Beer's law and dilution factor. Students also investigate the use of microemulsion to remove contaminants from soil using sudan III dye as a segregate model organic compound. This introduces the concept of waste remediation using a benign hydrophobic dye as a soil contaminant. In an optional part of the experiment, students can use fluorescence spectroscopy to probe the structure of micelles and microemulsions. The experiment is suitable for intermediate- and advanced-level students in environmental and analytical chemistry.

Water Management Aspects of the Britannia Mine Remediation Project, British Columbia, Canada

The Province of British Columbia, Canada, is undertaking environmental remediation at Britannia Mine, located approximately 45 km north of Vancouver. Britannia Mine operated for 70 years and produced mainly copper and zinc concentrates. During its operating life, and since its closure in 1974, the mine has discharged large volumes of acidic water with elevated concentrations of potentially toxic metals, including copper, zinc, and cadmium. Prior to the recent remedial efforts, metal loadings to Howe Sound averaged 300 kg/day each of copper and zinc. In addition to the acid rock drainage, mine infrastructure and mineral processing activities provide secondary sources of metal contamination of soils, sediments, ground water, and surface water. Effective water management is key to the remedial plan for the mine: ground water and surface water are the primary transport pathways for the metal contamination reaching the local receptors of Britannia and Furry creeks, and Howe Sound. The remedial concept includes diversion of clean water from entering the mine, use of the mine workings as a storage reservoir to balance seasonal flows to a water treatment plant, prior to discharging to Howe Sound via a deep outfall, and the interception of a metal-contaminated ground water plume.

A Proactive Approach to Planning and Designing Highways in East Tennessee Karst

The East Tennessee landscape consists of varied topography that reflects the lithology and geologic structure of the area. Karst makes up a large part of the East Tennessee landscape and is very problematic in locating, designing, and constructing highways. Instead of a reactive approach to dealing with karst in highway planning, design, and construction, this paper proposes a proactive methodology that is needed in karst terrain. Types of karst problems include sinkholes, caves and karren, collapse incidents, and groundwater contamination. Typical reactive remedial measures used in correcting karst-related highway problems include bridging, drainage alteration, and relocation. Proactive concepts implemented by the Tennessee Department of Transportation include avoidance measures such as relocation of the roadway and drainage design methods including impervious lined drainage ditches and highway runoff filtering systems. Additional proactive drainage measures include the use of graded rock pads, overflow channels from sinkholes to free-draining areas, sinkhole opening improvement and protection, and curbs for embankment sections. Innovative and cost-effective remedial concepts for solving karst-related geotechnical problems include avoidance, using lined ditches and graded rock pads, and other bridging- and drainage-related concepts. Stringent land use and building codes for karst areas are required to ensure the success of karst-related remedial design concepts proposed for highways.

Natural attenuation research at the contaminated megasite Zeitz

Monitored natural attenuation (MNA) as a possible remediation strategy has been intensively discussed over the last several years. However, in order to apply natural attenuation (NA) as a rational remediation option, suitable methods for the assessment and evaluation of the efficiency of these processes must be developed, the sustainability of the NA processes has to be demonstrated and regulatory and public acceptance has to be established. The RETZINA (Reference test site Zeitz for the implementation of the “Natural Attenuation” approach) -Project deals with the implementation of the MNA approach as a remediation concept at the heavily contaminated former industrial field site Zeitz (Germany). Due to the long history of industrial production, the multiple contaminant sources present and the large spatial extent, Zeitz is considered a contaminated megasite. The overall goal of the project is to incorporate novel site investigation methods into conventional strategies to improve site characterisation with respect to remediation measures relying on NA. Several investigation methods are being tested to examine temporal and spatial aspects of NA. In addition to conventional site investigation strategies, incorporation of new mass flux, toxicological and isotopic approaches form part of the research. Integral pumping tests yielded reliable data on mass fluxes through a control plane. The toxicological analysis gave new insights into contaminant interactions and the issue of multiple sources. Investigations of isotopic fractionation yielded increased confidence that NA is indeed ongoing at the site. Thus, the new methods gave more insight into the complexity of contaminant load and occurring degradation processes. Taken together, they strengthened the reliance on NA as a remediation option for this particular contamination at the megasite in context of the protection of water resources at the regional scale.

Neurocognitive effects of treatment for childhood cancer

We review research on the neuropsychological effects that central nervous system (CNS) cancer treatments have on the cognitive abilities of children and adolescents. The authors focus on the two most common malignancies of childhood: leukemias and brain tumors. The literature review is structured so as to separate out earlier studies, generally those published prior to 1995, as opposed to manuscripts that have been published within the past decade. This is an important distinction for both leukemia and brain tumors. Earlier studies were ground breaking in that they began to map out what could be expected in terms of intelligence and academic problems in survivors of pediatric malignancies. Survivorship in this population has and continues to markedly increase and this is largely due to changes in treatment protocols. Research on neurocognitive effects of disease and treatment in pediatric oncology has become increasingly sophisticated, and this literature review not only reflects this trend, but highlights the growing collaboration between neuropsychology, cognitive neuroscience, and neuro-imaging. Thus, our goal was to provide a historical foundation, lead the reader towards the progression of research methodology up to the current state of the art, and perhaps most importantly, discuss future directions. These directions are especially relevant to the concepts of remediation and treatment of cognitive problems, and this is emphasized at the conclusion of the review.

An Alternative Method for Remediating Lead-Contaminated Soils in Residential Areas: A Decision Case Study

Lead (Pb) is one of the most significant environmental contaminants worldwide and has significant human health effects. Historic use of Pb in paint and gasoline, in particular, have made this contaminant ubiquitous in our environment although widespread use of Pb has declined in the USA. Unfortunately, segments of the population are still receiving unacceptable doses of Pb. In the case reported here, citizens of Joplin, MO, will have input on a critical decision regarding the method by which the USEPA will remediate the Pb-contaminated soil in their community. Soil excavation is currently being used with the possibility of switching to phosphorus (P) amendment. Phosphorus added to the soil reacts with Pb to form an insoluble solid phase that is believed to be less harmful to humans compared with untreated soil. The use of P amendment offers advantages compared with soil excavation but has not been used before in residential areas. This case can be used to introduce students to the concepts of soil remediation, toxicology, and soil chemistry as well as social issues such as the use of tax dollars to support remediation. The learning objectives of this case are to understand the most common remediation strategy for Pb-contaminated soils and an alternative to that strategy, understand the concept of bioavailability and how it relates to the physiological effects of a soil contaminant on an organism, appreciate how soil amendments can change the bioavailability of a soil constituent, and to be able to identify the primary pathways of exposure for a soil contaminant and humans.

At the Intersection of Public Policy and Private Process: Court-Ordered Mediation and the Remedial Process in School Funding Litigation

Using Ohio's experience with court-ordered mediation in school finance litigation as a point of departure, this article examines the potential for court-ordered mediation to provide procedural justice in the remedial phase of institutional reform litigation. The article begins by sketching out some of the difficulties that courts encounter when designing a remedy in a school finance case and some of the reasons why, at least in the abstract, a mediation process may assist the parties and the court. Next, the article provides a brief history of the DeRolph v. State, 758 N.E. 2d 1113 (Ohio 2001), placing the abstract remedial concepts against the concrete details of a particular case. It then explores some possible reasons for the failure of the DeRolph mediation and suggests what might have been done to create a better possibility for success. In spite of the failure of the DeRolph mediation, this article suggests that mediation may play a productive role in the future of school finance cases. Court-ordered mediation may permit the re-structuring of the remedial process in a way that addresses minority rights which often are lost or minimized in the traditional legislative process. Further, a participatory mediation process holds promise for achieving remedial results in a school finance case that are both educationally viable and politically sustainable. Mediation may open new avenues for the resolution of litigation at the intersection of private process and public policy. Several lessons may be drawn from the DeRolph litigation. DeRolph teaches that mediation is more likely to play a positive role in the resolution of an important institutional reform case if it is considered as a primary avenue of achieving remedial results rather than as a very last resort. Further, any court considering whether to order the mediation of an important institutional reform case should be attentive to creating a substantive and procedural framework that will support the parties' motivation and effort to devise their own remedy. This article encourages the court to support court-ordered mediation by providing a clear and unequivocal statement of the rights of the parties and remedial principles that apply in the case and by outlining fall-back remedial procedures that will be implemented if resolution is not achieved. The court should also consider the legitimacy benefit that may accrue from the participation of a broad group of interested constituencies and construct a framework that supports the mediator's efforts to identify and include a broad group of stakeholders. This article represents an effort to learn from past failure and to plan for future success in school finance mediation and other public law litigation.

Location, Location, Location

The concept of remediation can help explain the cultural economy of the World Wide Web. As developed in a recently published book (co-authored with Jay Bolter), remediation refers to the way in which new digital media refashion prior media forms. Digital media like computer graphics, virtual reality, and the web define themselves by borrowing from, paying homage to, critiquing, and refashioning their predecessors, principally television, film, photography, and painting, but also print. Furthermore, older media can remediate newer ones within the same media economy. Remediation seems to be a fundamental characteristic not only for contemporary media, but for all visual media at least since the Renaissance with its invention of linear-perspective painting. Each medium seems to follow this pattern of borrowing and refashioning other media, and rivalry as well as homage seems always to be at work. In this paper I take up the cultural economy of the web in relation to three competing conceptual frameworks for making sense of new digital media: cyberspace, ubiquitous computing, and mediated public space. In so doing I hope to move towards an analysis of the cultural economy of the heterogenous networks within which digital media circulate and areconsumed.

Bench- and pilot-scale applications of electrochemical peroxidation: A new remedial concept

Electrochemical peroxidation (ECP) is a proprietary process that utilizes sacrificial iron electrodes and stochiometrically balanced applications of hydrogen peroxide to efficiently destroy aqueous phase contaminants. In laboratory trials it has been successful in reducing, often to non-detectable levels, BTEX, fuel additives, chlorinated solvents, and polychlorinated biphenyls in ground waters. The process has also been found effective in reducing the chemical and biological oxygen demand of industrial waste water. Agency-approved pilot tests will be conducted at two gasoline spill sites during 2000 where traditional pump and treat methods have proven ineffectual because of ground water chemistry or subsurface hydrologic conditions. The ECP process utilizes a tripartite treatment strategy consisting of 1) ex situ chemical oxidation; 2) in situ oxidation by reinjection of treated water with residual oxidants at the head of the plume; and 3) reestablishment of aerobic biodegradation by alteration of subsurface redox conditions. In contrast to other in situ oxidation treatment methods, dissolved iron is derived electrochemically, negating the need for ferrous salt addition. Dilute hydrogen peroxide (3 percent) is incrementally added to maximize oxidation efficiency and eliminate safety and environmental concerns accompanying the use of highly concentrated solutions. Results of laboratory trials and the geological and geochemical considerations of upcoming pilot-scale applications are presented. Other potential applications currently under investigation include combination with other remedial processes (e.g. permeable barriers and hydrogen release compounds) to insure complete and rapid contaminant mineralization.