Reclamation and Beneficial Use of Contaminated Dredged Material: Implementation Guidance for Select Options

ERDC TN-DOER-C12

February 2000

Reclamation and Beneficial Use of

Contaminated Dredged Material:

Implementation Guidance for Select Options

PURPOSE: The purpose of this technical note is to provide implementation guidance for select

options for the reclamation and beneficial use of contaminated dredged material. Previous technical

notes have discussed the characterization tests that can provide information necessary to assist in

the determination of the suitability of dredged material for beneficial uses and the application of

these characterization tests to case studies of beneficial uses of dredged material. This technical note

will build on the previous technical notes and give perspective to their implementation.

BACKGROUND: Beneficial use of dredged material is not a new concept. For years, relatively

clean dredged material has been used for numerous beneficial uses. Beneficial uses of dredged

material have been discussed in many forums such as the North Atlantic Regional Conference in

1987 (Landin 1988). Engineer Manual (EM) 1110-2-5026 (Headquarters, U.S. Army Corps of

Engineers, 1987) discusses numerous beneficial uses of dredged material from aquatic, island,

wetland, and upland habitat to strip-mine reclamation and construction and industrial/commercial

uses. Most of the sites discussed have used relatively clean dredged material containing low levels

of contaminants. Guidelines for disposal area reuse (DARM) have been discussed by Montgomery

et al. (1979). Planning and implementing productive land use of dredged material containment

areas was discussed by Walsh and Malkasian (1978). Guidance for land improvement using dredged

material was published as a synthesis report by Spaine, Llopis, and Perrier (1978).

While much has been written about beneficial uses of dredged material and containment areas, little

has been related to contaminated dredged material. However, contaminated dredged material has

also been shown recently to have beneficial use through emerging, innovative technologies.

Dredged material can be combined with other ingredients to engineer products for specific uses,

such as manufactured topsoil, engineered soil capping material, flowable construction fill, or

building blocks. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is still required to remove 229,366,470 cu m

(300 million cubic yards) of sediment from waterways and harbors each year. Even with

improved soil erosion control on land, massive amounts of soil find their way into the waterways

of this Nation and require removal. Facilities for placing and confining these sediments are filling

up and new facilities are difficult to establish. Consequently, removal and use of dredged material

from these facilities will allow storage space for future dredging projects. Some removal of

relatively clean sand for construction purposes has occurred in the past. New technologies can allow

for the removal and use of dredged material in a wide range of products. Some demonstrations have

been conducted such as manufactured topsoil at Toledo Harbor, Ohio, and at New York/New Jersey

Harbor, New York. The successful completion of the Toledo Harbor demonstration has resulted in

a commercialization plan to be developed to remove up to 611,644 cu m (800,000 cu yd) of dredged

material from Cell 1 per year for 10 years. This will empty Cell 1 and allow an additional 10 years

of storage capacity for the dredging of Toledo Harbor. This plan is being considered for implemen-

tation and will have a cost avoidance saving of at least 50 percent of a new confined placement

facility or ~$50 million. A pilot-scale field demonstration at New York/New Jersey Harbor has