This article is sponsored by Noah Chemicals, a global producer of custom chemical solutions.

In the United States alone, it is estimated there are over one million sites of contaminated land, according to reports from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). These sites can be found across all 50 states and vary in size and severity, with some of the most common contaminants being heavy metals, organic pollutants, and radioactive waste.

There are many ways that hazardous contaminants can enter the environment, including accidental releases, improper oversight of industrial or commercial activities, and agricultural practices, but the presence of contaminated land poses a serious threat to the environment and public health. Contaminants can seep into groundwater, contaminate drinking water, harm wildlife, and cause a host of negative health effects in surrounding populations.

Noah Chemicals, a renowned leader in chemical solutions, has made it their mission to tackle one of the most pressing challenges of our time: solutions for environmental remediation. Recognizing the widespread prevalence and gravity of this issue, their team of experts embraced the task of revolutionizing the formulation, application, and synthesis of remediation methods.

“Our mission at Noah Chemicals is to educate and empower people about the potential of environmental remediation and help them understand how our solutions can help,” said Kelly Sellers, chief chemist at Noah Chemicals. “While many are aware of the presence of pollutants, such as those found in Superfund sites or military bases, few realize that contaminated soil can be restored to its natural state. It may seem counterintuitive, but by initially removing all elements from the soil and then replenishing it with lost nutrients, we can revive its fertility.”

In the face of over one million contaminated sites nationwide, the urgency of environmental remediation becomes clear. Under the guidance of Noah Chemicals’ leadership and their commitment to enhancing remediation techniques, there is optimism for revitalizing polluted land to its original condition. This paves the way for a greener and healthier environment by making these methods more efficient for the organizations involved in the service of contaminated sites.

Get to Know Noah Chemicals

• Using its advanced facilities and deep knowledge of chemical compounds, Noah Chemicals is the premier choice for both standard and custom chemical products.
• Noah Chemicals produces custom chemical products for customers around the world.
• With a strong commitment to excellence in chemical manufacturing, Noah Chemicals seeks to continuously modernize and improve its manufacturing processes and chemical solutions.

Thomas Insights (TI): What positions Noah Chemicals as an expert in environmental remediation compared to competitors in your field?

Kelly Sellers (KS): Noah Chemicals has been in the waste treatment arena for a very long time. We understand the challenges that come with environmental remediation, and we can quickly move to facilitate either drop shipments or rapid transit to supply our clients with the chemicals they need when they need them.

We often work with subcontractors of the United States government to assist them in their efforts to decontaminate these sites. The subcontractors are doing the actual remediation work on site and we provide them with the right chemical solutions to effectively execute the remediation techniques.

A lot of these contractors that we work with have a basic understanding or a roadmap of what needs to be done to decontaminate the soil, but there are nearly always unforeseen hurdles they have to face. So, our ability to be nimble is a great advantage to them.

TI: Can you explain to our readers some of the remediation solutions Noah Chemicals developed?

KS: We provide several different soil remediation solutions that users can employ in either of the following remediation categories: in-situ and ex-situ. With in-situ methods, the remediation takes place at the contaminated site. In certain cases, the remediation efforts must take place ex-situ, or at a different location. This could be due to space limitations, the severity of the contamination, the complexity of the treatment, or other reasons.

Depending on the situation and the type of remediation required, we have developed a variety of chemicals that can treat and restore the soil, including potassium permanganate, hydrogen peroxide, calcium acetate hydrate, and sodium persulfate. There are four main soil remediation methods: soil washing, stabilization, thermal desorption, and bioremediation.

Soil washing is an ex-situ technique that employs a liquid with chemical additives to scrub the soil and effectively remove contaminants. Stabilization, on the other hand, is an in-situ method that uses binding agents to physically unite contaminants, preventing their seepage into groundwater. For thermal desorption, an ex-situ approach, contaminated soil is subjected to high temperatures, effectively vaporizing the contaminants. Bioremediation takes an in-situ approach, utilizing naturally occurring microorganisms to break down pollutants into less harmful substances. The choice of method depends on the type and concentration of contaminants, the depth of contamination, and the cost.

TI: What is the biggest takeaway you would like our readers to gain from this article?

KS: I believe there is a common misconception among the general public that chemicals are bad or dangerous. Because of this belief, it seems counterintuitive to use chemicals to clean the soil. Soil remediation methods eliminate everything from the soil, including the contaminants and the nutrients, and then we rebuild the soil to a healthy and fruitful state.

We want to give people a greater knowledge and understanding of the solutions we offer and how the chemicals can be beneficial to the land that remediation teams use them on. This aversion to chemicals being used in everyday life is a challenge we hope to help people slowly overcome. We are surrounded by chemicals in every part of our lives, and we want people to realize that this is not a bad or scary thing.

Learn more about Noah Chemical’s environmental remediation solutions.