Abstract:
Companies are often faced with making difficult decisions to address environmental
contamination at their properties. There are multiple reasons why companies choose, or are
forced, to address environmental contamination. These reasons range from a government
mandated enforcement order, discovery of contamination during an acquisition or divestiture, or
the redevelopment of a closed facility. Within each of these scenarios, there are multiple
definitions of success. Success can be defined from minimizing cost, redeveloping properties for
residential purposes, or avoiding litigation from third parties or the government. Companies
often design their remediation programs after they have determined their definition of success.
As part of its expansion in the United States, Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc. (SEA) has
grown mainly by buying existing manufacturing companies. The majority of these acquisitions
were conducted in the late 1970's and 1980's before the establishment of formal environmental
due diligence procedures. Thus, the environmental condition of these properties were unknown
until different sets of circumstances brought them to light and forced SEA to deal with them
appropriate!y.
This project will evaluate three case studies from SEA locations in Alabama, Ohio, and Illinois.
The remediation of each of these locations was designed to achieve different goals. Remediation
goals for each location were defined by SEA management with the assistance oflegal counsel
and environmental consultants. The case studies will present the background of each location,
what the objectives were for each location, review the technologies used to address the
environmental problem and evaluate if the solutions implemented were successful in achieving
the stated objective.
A tool called the Remediation Program Evaluation (RPE) matrix will be used to assess each of
the cases. The matrix has been designed to evaluate several elements that ultimately dictate the
success of site remediation programs. This project offers the opportunity to respectively evaluate
site remediation programs and determine the utility of the RPE for future use in site remediation
planning. By utilizing the RPE in future cases, it will increase the likelihood that remediation
projects will be successful in achieving their objectives.
