Abstract
Contaminated site management is a multiple objective decision-making that generally involves different factors, such as performance of technology, environmental effects, cost, and social influence. In this study, we developed a sustainability assessment-based methodology for the prioritization of contaminated site risk management options. We integrate remediation sustainable assessment and redevelopment sustainable assessment in one framework and allow the optimization of indicators. The framework started with the definition of site management type, then investigating site characterization, screening indicators, quantifying of indicator, selecting assessment model, selecting primary options, assessment with uncertainty analysis, and determining of preferred options. To demonstrate the utility of the framework, results are presented in a contaminate site in southwest China for two risk management decisions, site remediation and site redevelopment. We used different approaches to evaluate the stability and robustness of assessment results, including Monte Carlo simulation, scenario analysis, and sensitivity analysis. The demonstration showed that attention has to be paid to the proper description of the site, the principles of the procedure, and the decision criteria.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data availability
All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article and its supplementary information files
References
An D, Xi B, Ren J, Wang Y, Jia X, He C, Li Z (2016) Sustainability assessment of groundwater remediation technologies based on multi-criteria decision making method. Resour Conserv Recycl 119:36–46. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2016.08.002
Bardos R, Hayley T, Jonathan S et al (2018) The development and use of sustainability criteria in SuRF-UK’s sustainable remediation framework. Sustainability-Basel 10(6):1781. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10061781
Bardos RP, Thomas HF, Smith J et al (2020) Sustainability assessment framework and indicators developed by SuRF-UK for land remediation option appraisal. Remediation (N Y) 31(1):5–27. https://doi.org/10.1002/rem.21668
Braun AB, Trentin A, Visentin C et al (2019a) Sustainable remediation through the risk management perspective and stakeholder involvement: a systematic and bibliometric view of the literature. Environ Pollut 255:113221. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113221
Braun AB, Trentin A, Visentin C et al (2019b) Proposal for an optimized method for sustainable remediation evaluation and application: implementation of a multi-criteria process. Environ Sci Pollut Res 26(35):35996–36006. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-06706-6
Brinkhoff, P (2011) Multi-criteria analysis for assessing sustainability of remedial actions-applications in contaminated land development. Chalmers University of Technology.
Chiang S, Gu Q (2015) Brownfield sites remediation technology overview, trends, and opportunities in China. Remediation (N Y) 25(3):85–99. https://doi.org/10.1002/rem.21434
CL:AIRE (2020a) Supplementary report 1 of the SuRF-UK framework: a general approach to sustainability assessment for use in achieving sustainable remediation (SR1). CL:AIRE. www.claire.co.uk/surfuk
CL:AIRE (2020b) Supplementary report 2 of the SuRF-UK framework: selection of indicators/criteria for use in sustainability assessment for achieving sustainable remediation (SR2). CL:AIRE. www.claire.co.uk/surfuk
Cuolon F et al (2016) China's soil and groundwater management challenges: lessons from the UK's experience and opportunities for China. Environ Int 91:196–200. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2016.02.023
Demesouka OE, Anagnostopoulos KP, Eleftherios S (2018) Spatial multicriteria decision support for robust land-use suitability: the case of landfill site selection in Northeastern Greece. Eur J Oper Res 272(2):574–586. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejor.2018.07.005
Hou D, Al-Tabbaa A (2014) Sustainability: a new imperative in contaminated land remediation. Environ Sci Policy 39(5):25–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2014.02.003
Hou D, O'Connor D, Al-Tabbaa A (2014) Comparing the adoption of contaminated land remediation technologies in the United States, United Kingdom, and China. Remediation (N Y) 25:33–51. https://doi.org/10.1002/rem.21413
Hou D, Li G, Nathanail P (2018) An emerging market for groundwater remediation in China: policies, statistics, and future outlook. Front Environ Sci 12(1):16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-018-1027-x
Huysegoms L, Cappuyns V (2017) Critical review of decision support tools for sustainability assessment of site remediation options. J Environ Manage 196(JUL.1):278–296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.03.002
Keeney RL (1992) Value-focused thinking: a path to creative decision-making. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, p 432
Keeney RL, Raiffa H, Rajala DW (1979) Decisions with multiple objectives: preferences and value tradeoffs. IEEE Trans Syst Man Cybern Syst 9(7):403–403. https://doi.org/10.1109/TSMC.1979.4310245
Li J, Fan J, Jiang J (2019) Human health risk assessment of soil in an abandoned arsenic plant site: implications for contaminated site remediation. Environ Earth Sci 78(24)
Liu J, Wu J, Feng W, Li X (2020) Ecological Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Water Bodies around Typical Copper Mines in China. Int J Environ Res Public Health 17(12):4315. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17124315
Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP). Announcements on the release of five national environmental protection standards, 2014a. http://www.mee.gov.cn/gkml/hbb/bgg/201402/t20140224_268193.htm. [In Chinese]
Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP). Technical guidelines for site soil remediation (HJ25.4-2014), 2014b.
Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) and Ministry of Land and Resources (MLR) of P. R. China. The national soil pollution survey bulletin; 2014. http://www.sdpc.gov.cn/fzgggz/ncjj/zhdt/201404/t20140418_607888.html, [In Chinese].
Qu C, Shi W, Guo J, Fang B, Wang S, Giesy JP, Holm PE (2016) China’s Soil pollution control: choices and challenges. Environ Sci Technol 50:13181–13183. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.6b05068
Rausand M, Høyland A (1994) System reliability theory. Models, statistical methods and applications. 2nd edition. Wiley
Rosen L, Back PE, Soederqvist T et al (2015) SCORE: a novel multi-criteria decision analysis approach to assessing the sustainability of contaminated land remediation. Sci Total Environ 511:621–638. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2014.12.058
Ruiz MC, Romero E, Pérez MA, Fernándezet I (2012) Development and Application of a Multi-Criteria Spatial Decision Support System for Planning Sustainable Industrial Areas in Northern Spain. Automat Constr 22:320–333. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.AUTCON.2011.09.009
Sam K, Coulon F, Prpich G (2017) A multi-attribute methodology for the prioritisation of oil contaminated sites in the Niger Delta. Sci Total Environ 579:1323–1332. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.11.126
SCC (State Council of the People’s Republic of China) (2016) The national soil pollution prevention and treatment action plan of China. http://www.gov.cn/zhengce/content/2016-05/31/content_5078377.htm (in Chinese)
Song Y, Hou D, Zhang J, O'Connor D, Li G, Gu Q, Li S, Liu P (2018) Environmental and socio-economic sustainability appraisal of contaminated land remediation strategies: a case study at a mega-site in China[J]. Sci Total Environ 610:391–401. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.08.016
Sorvari J, Seppala J (2010) A decision support tool to prioritize risk management options for contaminated sites. Sci Total Environ 408(8):1786–1799. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2009.12.026
Stezar IC, Pizzol L, Critto A, Ozunu A, Marcomini A (2013) Comparison of risk-based decision-support systems for brownfield site rehabilitation: DESYRE and SADA applied to a Romanian case study. J Environ Manage 131:383–393. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2013.09.022
UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) (2012) The Fourth United Nations World Water Development Report: managing water under risk and uncertainty (WWDR4), UNESCO, Marseilles. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ ark:/48223/pf0000215644
US EPA (2015) Superfund community involvement handbook. http://www2.epa.gov/superfund/community-involvement-tools-and-resources#tab-2
Von Winterfeldt D, Edwards W (1986) Decision analysis and behavioral research. Cambridge University Press, New York, p 624. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molimm.2008.08.225
Yang J, Zhang Q, Fu X, Chen H, Hu P, Wang L (2019) Natural attenuation mechanism and health risk assessment of 1,1,2-trichloroethane in contaminated groundwater. J Environ Manage 242(JUL.15):457–464. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2019.04.085
Yun WJ (2015) Problems and Countermeasures in the development and utilization of polluted urban sites in China. Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences 4:484–491. https://doi.org/10.16418/j.issn.1000-3045.2015.04.007
Zuo L, Zhang Z, Carlson KM, MacDonald GK, Brauman KA, Liu Y, Zhang W, Zhang H, Wu W, Zhao X, Wang X, Liu B, Yi L, Wen Q, Liu F, Xu J, Hu S, Sun F, Gerber JS, West PC (2018) Progress towards sustainable intensification in China challenged by land-use change. Nat Sustain 1:304–313. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-018-0076-2
Funding
This study was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41807344).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
Conceptualization and methodology, Jin Wu; formal analysis and investigation, Yanna Xiong; writing—original draft preparation, Yinxin Ge, Yanna Xiong; writing—review and editing, Yanna Xiong, Wenchao Yuan; funding acquisition, Jin Wu; resources, Yanna Xiong; supervision, Yanna Xiong, All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Ethics approval and consent to participate
Not applicable.
Consent for publication
Not applicable.
Competing interests
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Additional information
Responsible Editor: Kitae Baek
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Supplementary information
ESM 1
(DOCX 1705 kb)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wu, ., Xiong, Y., Ge, Y. et al. A sustainability assessment-based methodology for the prioritization of contaminated site risk management options. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29, 7503–7513 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-15911-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-15911-1