Thanks to the subject matter expertise and keen attention to detail of CMI’s own Geoservices Manager, Sean Fullmer, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) was alerted of a potential mistake in the equation for calculating degradation coefficients from half-life values posted on the official PADEP website.
25 PA Code, Chapter 250 (Act 2) where the calculation is housed, handles regulations for the administration of land recycling or site remediation as it is more commonly called. The updated equation is used to calculate groundwater cleanup levels used in site remediation projects under the Voluntary Cleanup Program and the Storage Tanks Corrective Action Process.
The calculation in question stated that degradation rates (K) were calculated using “Ln(2) * Half-life”; the correct calculation is “Ln(2) / Half-life”. PADEP thanked CMI for identifying the inaccuracy and removed the incorrect equation from the website.