SERDP and ESTCP Workshop on Investment Strategies to Optimize Research and Demonstration Impacts in Support of DoD Restoration Goals

Abstract : The Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) and the Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) are designed to develop and transition innovative research and technology to help the Department of Defense (DoD) perform its mission in several environmental areas, including cleanup of contaminated sites. Periodically, workshops are held by the Program office to determine future areas of investment. This report summarizes results of a workshop on developing investment strategies to optimize research and demonstration impacts in support of DoD restoration goals. The DoD s recently updated Defense Environmental Restoration Program (DERP) goals call for achieving Response Complete (RC)1 at 90% of the Installation Restoration Program (IRP) and Military Munitions Response Program (MMRP) sites at active installations and the IRP sites at Formerly Used Defense Sites (FUDS) properties by the end of FY 2018. There is also a followup goal to achieve RC at 95% of these sites at by the end of FY 2021. The Cost to Complete (CTC)2 at IRP sites was calculated at $12.8 billion in FY 2010. Some of the Services have more aggressive goals, and have proceeded to target site closure, with no long term management liabilities, at many sites within the next 5 to 15 years. The DoD is responsible for many types of contaminated sites; however, contaminated groundwater has proven to be the cost driver at many military facilities. Substantial progress has been made in the past 20 years in the development of technologies for remediation of contaminated groundwater; however, significant challenges remain (e.g., DNAPLs in fractured media and contaminants in low-permeability materials). The overall CTC is largely driven by these difficult sites. Cleanup to unrestricted use is often desired, but technically difficult to achieve, and sustainable remediation has become an increasingly important goal as well.