US Army Corps of Engineers
Nyanza Superfund Site, Ashland, MA

Nobis was selected by the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to provide engineering services and oversight to install 43 vapor mitigation systems (VMS) in residential homes and in the Town Hall; so, residents and Town Hall employees would not be exposed to vapor concentration that could be harmful to human health. Vapor of concern included TCE and vinyl chloride.
Prior to mobilizing to the site, Nobis prepared a Work Plan, a Site Specific Health and Safety Plan including addressing work with confined space entries, and performed 43 pre-construction meetings. Nobis VMS installation scope included moving storage items from the basements into temporary storage containers, sealing all basement floors by pouring concrete floors and sealing fieldstone walls with mortar or a parge coat, installing an extraction pit below the concrete floor, installing a 3" diameter PVC pipe from the extraction pit to the outside above the roof line, installing manometers and exhaust fans, replacing columns, upgrading sump pump systems, performing required carpentry, roofing, masonry, plumbing and HVAC modifications, and performing backdraft evaluations. Sealing activities were also performed in several crawl spaces with very limited clearances. Some properties required a temporary access to the basement and/or crawl spaces. In many buildings, electrical system needed to be upgraded to current code. Numerous emergency asbestos and lead based paint abatement works were performed.
Nobis provided full-time site management oversight to coordinate the multiple contractors including temporary storage container provider, moving company, VMS installation contractor, asbestos abatement contractor, asbestos abatement project monitor and the certified industrial hygienist. Nobis' Field Operations Lead was also responsible for coordinating all the construction work with the 43 different home owners and tenants.
Nobis coordinated all performed work with EPA, USACE, MADEP, and town officials. Nobis submitted weekly financial updates and attended weekly project team meetings, updated construction schedules, prepared close-out documents, and assisted Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MADEP) in preparing the O&M manual.