Quebec’s Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) has launched a $3.5-million initiative aimed at developing new ways to treat PFAS and other persistent contaminants directly in polluted soil and groundwater.
The five-year Industrial Research Chair in In Situ Treatment of Soil and Groundwater Contaminated by Persistent and Emerging Pollutants is being established with funding from Quebec’s Ministry of the Environment, the Fight Against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks (MELCCFP) and environmental engineering firm ABS-TechnoRem.
Led by INRS hydrogeology professor Richard Martel, the research will focus on in situ remediation techniques, which treat contamination underground rather than excavating contaminated soil or pumping groundwater to the surface for treatment.
Researchers will target contaminants including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), petroleum hydrocarbons, dioxins, furans, perchlorates, brominated flame retardants, plasticizers and selected pharmaceutical products.
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Many of the contaminants are persistent and can be particularly difficult to address when located deep underground or beneath buildings and other infrastructure.
“The easiest sites to decontaminate are already being treated, but persistent contaminants — buried deep underground or located beneath infrastructure — are stubbornly hard to get at and remove,” Martel said in a statement from INRS. “With this Chair, we aim to address Quebec’s needs by working with industry to develop innovative and sustainable approaches capable of treating these pollutants directly at the source,” Martel added.
The research will progress from laboratory experiments to intermediate-scale testing using two- and three-dimensional sand tanks, followed by pilot-scale field trials.
INRS said the work will also examine how remediation technologies can be adapted to Quebec conditions, including its colder climate and remote contaminated sites.
The research team at INRS’s Centre Eau Terre Environnement will draw on expertise in site remediation, environmental biotechnology, industrial bioprocesses, modelling and engineering. Researchers from Polytechnique Montréal and Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT) will also participate.
TechnoRem, which has specialized in groundwater and contaminated-site work since 1996 and became part of Groupe ABS in 2022, will provide operational expertise for testing technologies under field conditions and transferring successful approaches to end users.
According to INRS, expanding in situ remediation could reduce the need to excavate and transport contaminated soil to landfill, lowering associated greenhouse gas emissions and disturbances at contaminated sites.
The approach can also be useful where excavation would be particularly disruptive or impractical because contamination lies beneath existing infrastructure. Treating contamination in place can allow surface activities to continue while reducing the movement of contaminated material to other locations.
Jean-Marc Lauzon, principal director of ABS-TechnoRem, said the research could help advance technologies for returning polluted properties to safe use.
“In situ decontamination is essential for rehabilitating polluted sites and ensuring they can be used safely,” Lauzon said. “With the vision and expertise of our partners, we will strengthen Quebec’s leadership in remediation solutions and continue to develop cutting-edge approaches to meet tomorrow’s challenges.”
The chair is also intended to support Quebec’s 2023–2029 Action Plan under its Soil Protection and Contaminated Land Rehabilitation Policy.
The provincial plan seeks to increase the use of sustainable rehabilitation technologies and the number of contaminated properties treated using in situ methods.
“Land decontamination and redevelopment are strategic and essential priorities in efforts to revitalize our communities,” said Marie Andrée Vézina, director of MELCCFP’s Soil Protection and Industrial Remediation Branch.
Vézina said the research chair is expected to help increase the number of sites rehabilitated using in situ technologies while building remediation expertise within the province.
INRS said the initiative will also train graduate students and other researchers in contaminated-site remediation as demand for specialized expertise grows.
