An Evaluation of Different Risk Ranking Systems for Contaminated Sites

Risk ranking systems for contaminated sites have been developed by different jurisdictions with similar purpose, but it is not clear whether they provide results that are comparable. The United States’ Preliminary Assessment (PA) system, Sweden’s Methods for Inventories of Contaminated Sites (MICS) and New Zealand’s Risk Screening System (RSS) methods are assessed in this thesis. These methods were compared with each other and with the Canada’s National Classification System for Contaminated Sites (NCSCS) as well as a preliminary quantitative risk assessment (PQRA) method. The objectives were to determine if all these systems can yield similar recommendations regarding further actions, and to assess if there are acceptable correlations between the different methods. The study concludes that the PA, MICS and NCSCS methods can achieve similar conclusions, although there is a certain degree of inconsistency that is present; the RSS system can distinguish the very high and very low risk sites and; acceptable correlations exists among the these methods except for between PA and PQRA.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Engineering (MEng)

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Civil Engineering

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Graduate Studies

Year dc:date.issued

2014

Author dc:creator

• Sha, Huimei

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Achari, Gopal
• Langford, Cooper

• Engineering--Environmental

Statement dc:rights

• University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.

Language dc:language.iso

eng

DOI

http://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/24858

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:ucalgary.scholaris.ca:11023/1292