The Nielsen Environmental Field School training

Most environmental projects involve the investigation and characterization of a variety of interconnected environmental media, including soil, ground water, surface water and sediment. There is a tendency to view each of these media in an isolated manner, which can lead to difficulties in interpreting sampling results later. Writing an effective site-specific Sampling & Analysis Plan to address these issues is much more involved than just sitting at your desk and “cutting and pasting” procedures that may have been prepared for a variety of other sites – that approach is often doomed to failure. Having a written site-specific Sampling & Analysis Plan for all field personnel to follow is an essential component of technical and legal defensibility and data validation.

Developing an effective environmental sampling strategy is a complex task that requires significant planning and forethought. Prior to selecting an appropriate strategy, it is essential to review as many background documents as possible about the site and its surroundings, to create an initial conceptual site model (CSM). With the preliminary CSM in place, you must then field-verify the details of your model by conducting a thorough site reconnaissance. There are many questions that must be asked and answered during site reconnaissance that will guide you through the development of an effective sampling strategy. This topic is covered in two modules. The first module walks you through the development of a CSM and demonstrates how to conduct an effective site reconnaissance.

During environmental sampling events, a wide variety of field equipment is used to collect samples from a multitude of media and to perform field analysis on a variety of media. It is a common practice to use most equipment on a portable basis, at more than one sampling location. This is certainly convenient, but introduces the potential for cross-contamination of sampling locations and individual samples, both of which will affect the representative nature of samples collected. To prevent this potentially very serious and costly problem, it is critical to implement thorough and effective field equipment cleaning protocols. Within this module, classroom presentations and four separate field videos discuss in detail field equipment cleaning protocols that apply to equipment used for sampling soil, ground water, surface water and sediment.

One of the most challenging questions faced at the start of a ground-water monitoring program is “what are the most effective locations for this site’s ground-water monitoring wells and well screens?”  This in-depth series of 5 separate modules addresses all of the myriad elements that must be evaluated to answer this seemingly simple question.  Field videos are included within several of these modules to explain the field methods used in environmental site characterization.  While you may opt to take just one or two of these modules, it is strongly recommended that you take all 5 modules in the prescribed order if you want comprehensive coverage of the subject.

There are more than a dozen different drilling methods that may be used to drill boreholes to collect soil samples for site characterization and install monitoring wells, but which method is most appropriate for your project?  This series of 2 modules provides a detailed discussion on how to effectively evaluate and select the best drilling method for anticipated site conditions that will meet site-specific project objectives.  Each of the most commonly used drilling methods is described in detail with respect to their operational characteristics and their applications and limitations for environmental site characterization and monitoring well installation.  Field video is included at the end of the first module to explain the principles and practices employed in sonic drilling.  While you may opt to take just one of these modules, it is strongly recommended that you take both modules in the prescribed order if you want comprehensive coverage of the subject.

During drilling of boreholes for site characterization and monitoring well installation, soil samples must be collected to document site geologic conditions.  These soil samples are used to develop a detailed understanding of site hydrogeology, to determine the presence/absence of contamination, to determine the location, physical and chemical characteristics of target monitoring zones in which wells will be installed, and to design well screens and filter packs.  This series of 2 modules discusses collection of soil samples for both physical and chemical analysis, parameters and techniques for detailed physical soil sample description, and proper handling of soil samples during sampling events.  While you may opt to take just one of these modules, it is strongly recommended that you take both modules in the prescribed order if you want comprehensive coverage of the subject.

If you think there is a simple cookbook, one-size-fits-all approach to building monitoring wells that will consistently produce sediment-free, representative ground-water samples, you’re wrong!  This series of 4 modules will demonstrate why by covering the complex topic of monitoring well design and construction from the bottom (the well screen) to the top (surface completion) and everything in between.  Discover how to correctly design and build a monitoring well that will meet site-specific objectives and that will produce representative, sediment-free samples for the life of the monitoring program.

The well is installed, the surface completion is finished but the well is still not ready to sample.  Development is a critical step following construction of monitoring wells that is often short-changed or, sometimes, not implemented at all when new wells are installed at a site.  This can result in a detrimental impact on the ability of the new well to yield representative ground-water samples – from the perspective of ensuring adequate flow toward and into the well, volume of water available for sampling, and formation-quality ground-water samples.  This module debunks many of the myths and misunderstandings associated with well development.  Learn what types of development methods are available, which work well and which don’t work well, which methods should never be used in monitoring wells, and why some wells should not be developed.

It is a common practice to use a variety of field equipment that travels from well to well during a ground-water sampling event. Portable equipment such as water-level gauges, flow cells, analytical instruments and multi-parameter sondes are examples of some equipment that is used in each monitoring well, even in situations where dedicated pumps are used. And, of course, where portable pumps are used, the pump (and, in many cases, the discharge tubing) will also travel from well to well. To avoid the potentially very serious and costly problem of monitoring well cross-contamination, it is critical to implement thorough and effective field equipment cleaning protocols.

Have you ever wondered if there is a better method than you are currently using for collecting more representative water-level data and ground-water samples from your wells?  Ever thought about all of the various sources of bias and error in water-level measurement and sample collection procedures and wondered how each could affect the data in your sampling program?  This series of 2 modules provides an in-depth discussion of how water-level measurement and ground-water sampling protocols have evolved over the years and how, through decades of research, modern sampling methods (when implemented properly) can yield vastly improved field data and more representative ground-water samples.