REPRESENTATIVE PROJECTS

Brownfields Redevelopment
Mission Bay Area
San Francisco, California

The Principals at Iris Environmental provided strategic planning and environmental consultation services for Catellus Development Corporation, the developer of the unique and immensely complex mixed-use development planned for the Mission Bay Area of San Francisco, California. This project entails the redevelopment of over 300 acres of land within the heart of downtown San Francisco. Past site uses included a wide variety of manufacturing and industrial operations, including extensive rail-related operations and bulk oil and hydrocarbon products storage, from approximately 1902 to present. The development plan includes high-density housing; public and private open space; a hotel; police and fire stations; office, biotech, research and development facilities; and retail and entertainment uses.

The members of Iris conducted two major site characterization projects and completed a human health and ecological risk evaluation for the site. Using the results of the risk evaluations, Iris Principals crafted a site wide Risk Management Plan, which detailed the specific management measures to be undertaken during the different phases of the 20-year phased development. The San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board, the designated Administering Agency under the AB2061 program, approved the site characterizations, risk evaluations, and Risk Management Plan. A Certificate of Completion was issued for the Site in May 1999, and development of the site began in September 1999.

This project, which had been on the back burner for decades and had been branded by the regulatory agencies and surrounding community as a "toxic waste site," represents a significant achievement in the use of human health risk assessment and focused risk management to identify the appropriate solutions for managing the risks associated with the development of environmentally impaired property. Iris Environmental continues to provide environmental monitoring support to the project through its evolution and construction.

Brownfields Redevelopment
Middlefield-Ellis-Whisman Federal Superfund Site
Mountain View, California

The Principals at Iris Environmental evaluated the suitability of expanding the existing operations of a large computer software company to areas directly on top of a large Federal Superfund Site in the South Bay. The development involved the demolition of numerous buildings and the construction of multiple two and three story buildings, each between 55,000 to 75,000 square feet in size. Contamination at the Superfund Site consists principally of chlorinated solvents in the ground water and soil. Active remediation of the groundwater continues and involves the pumping and treating of the groundwater at nearby air strippers. The Principals at Iris worked closely with the client and negotiated with the developer to identify those areas of the site that would be most appropriate for future buildings based on the environmental issues and the construction specifications that would be necessary to mitigate potential for exposures. Additionally, Iris Environmental has initiated a risk communication program for employees at multiple levels of the organization and has continued to respond to a series of indoor air quality questions and concerns.

Similar exercises have been completed for two additional large sites, one a missile manufacturing facility and the second a former silicon wafer fabrication facility. Both sites required the evaluation of risk to future occupants (internet software R&D; operations), technical interface with local planning departments, CEQA mitigation measure evaluation, site investigation, and environmental due diligence assessments.

Environmental Compliance Support
Automotive Manufacturing Facility
Fremont, California

Iris Environmental provides strategic environmental consulting for New United Motors Manufacturing, Inc. in Fremont, California. This automobile manufacturing operation is an innovative joint venture between General Motors and Toyota. Multiple projects have been undertaken to assess possible hydrocarbon release areas and to engineer solutions for hydrocarbons detected in soils and ground water beneath the facility. Environmental considerations have also been addressed for multiple plant expansions. Iris Environmental is currently assisting NUMMI meet their state and federal air pollution regulatory requirements with an air emission inventory database developed for compliance monitoring. Iris Environmental has addressed multiple RCRA closure programs. Iris Environmental principals continue to represent the automobile manufacturer before state and local regulatory agencies.

Indoor Air Quality Evaluation
School District
Southern California

Iris Environmental has been providing support to a major southern California School District to evaluate indoor air quality impacts surrounding the use of portable classrooms. The project has included designing a statistically based air-monitoring program to determine the levels of chemicals and molds that may be attributable to the portable classrooms. Working closely with members of a Technical Working Group, we developed indoor air health standards to identify and prioritize those portable classrooms that pose the greatest risk to the health of students and teachers. All targeted portable classrooms are currently the subject of additional evaluations.

Brownfields Redevelopment
Aerospace Research and Manufacturing Facility
Sunnyvale, California

Iris Environmental is assisting a developer through the environmental due diligence phase of purchasing a large aerospace research and manufacturing facility located in Sunnyvale, California. Historical operations at the facility resulted in the release of a variety of chemicals, including chlorinated solvents, to the underlying soil and groundwater. The facility is currently undergoing active ground water remediation, under the direction of the Regional Water Quality Control Board. Our services have included conducting supplemental soil and groundwater investigations to understand the extent of existing environmental liabilities, and evaluating the significance of the analytical results. Following the purchase of the property, we have been involved in monitoring the environmental conditions associated with the building demolition activities. Additionally, we have conducted risk-based evaluations to determine the appropriate health-protective responses to the identification of previously unknown areas of contamination.

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