Atlantic City Airport

Atlantic City, NJ

Due to firefighting drills held at the Atlantic City Airport, PFC levels are high in the systems ground water and surface water supplies. The ACMUA tasked H2M with designing a system to bring them into compliance with new PFC contaminant levels implemented in 2021. Rapid treatment on an urgent timeline was necessary to ensure compliance within the year.

To meet the strict deadline, H2M leveraged our previous experience in treating chemicals in this family, prior established relationships with manufacturer partners, and ACMUA’s existing equipment. We guided the ACMUA on deploying GAC to three wells on the bank of a lake and advised on how to manage source water. Contractors and vessel manufacturer representatives were brought to the FAA-owned site ahead of time to give a better understanding of site conditions and constraints. The dirt access road to the well sites is relatively narrow and the area is highly wooded. An FAA escort was required for site access and no large equipment could be left behind overnight without permission.

H2M proposed installation of three sets of GAC vessels, with one vessel pair at each of the three different wells. Design specified placement of the vessels on road plates to avoid excessive soils disturbance and enable easy removal once a permanent solution was introduced. Vessels were procured by ACMUA prior to completion of the general contract design to ensure they could be manufactured in time. GAC media was also purchased by the ACMUA through an extension of the existing contract the authority had with Calgon.

To assist in mitigating GAC backwash challenges, the contractor and H2M developed a plan to install temporary bypass loops between the influent and effluent lines on the vessel tree. This let the vessels get backwashed with well water and then sent it to the head of the plant to go through the rest of the treatment plant. Oil found in the well columns from the oil-lubricated pumps was bailed out to prevent the oil from getting into the vessels. Water lubricated pumps were used to replace the existing oil-lubricated pumps.

The project went according to the design plan, schedule, and budget with a few exceptions. The road plates specified were replaced by concrete mats, resulting in a credit to ACMUA and an expedited process. Supply chain issues caused minor delays. The project brought ACMUA into compliance with the PFC MCL that was set for New Jersey. Further work will need to be done over the next year or two to create a permanent solution.

Awards
NJ Alliance Award – Action Distinguished Engineering
ACEC-NY – Engineering Excellence Gold
ACEC-NJ – Honor Award