Mrs B, Berkshire

“I just want to say how pleased I have been with the way OLS have dealt with the repair of my home.  They have all been very respectful to my situation.”

Bioremediation

OLS believe passionately in the sustainable remedial approach to kerosene contamination which includes using biological systems to remove or reduce environmental pollutants.

Kerosene, under the right circumstances will degrade into less harmful products and if the naturally occurring systems can be harnessed to increase this bioremediation, then it is possible to lessen the disruption and risk involved.

It is necessary for a proportion of the contamination to be extracted for ex-situ treatment off-site,
but by utilising in-situ bioremediation techniques, the amount of site disturbance can be reduced dramatically to everyone’s advantage.

Excavate, Expose & Extract

The removal of heavily impacted materials is an important part of containing a site and facilitating the remediation process.

Excavations may be required outside or inside property and OLS has gained invaluable experience working with engineers, conservation officers and planners, working on listed and historic property, fragile structures and working within conservation areas.

Quality Control,
Research & Development

At OLS we check the products that we use in the field. It is important to us that the products and systems we employ work effectively with no undesirable side effects. We are also constantly pushing the boundaries of development, re-thinking and re-designing our options.

We have many years of experience working with remedial systems and we are continually improving, inventing, and re-designing these systems with our customers in mind. We build our own systems that are practical and cost efficient so that we can deliver effective solutions at a sensible cost for our customers.

Bespoke treatment

At OLS we have discovered that a ‘one size fits all’ approach is not applicable to the majority of jobs we manage – every escape of fuel remediation has its own set of challenges. Therefore, whether it is groundwater depth, soil chemistry, soil structure, access restrictions, weather conditions or environmental sensitivity, we make sure the remediation that we deliver is suitably designed.

OLS have excellent experience in treatment delivery and have developed in-situ treatment systems designed to target the contaminated areas directly.

Oil & Water Separator

Kerosene floats on water and whilst some of its lighter hydrocarbons dissolve in water, there is an opportunity to recover kerosene from the water surface via an oil and water separator.

Furthermore, with the addition of active carbon filtration, the water extracted from the ground can be returned free of kerosene contamination. At OLS we have developed bespoke, cost-effective oil and water separation systems that can be adapted to any remediation situation.

Emergency containment

An escape of fuel incident can cause significant damage to property and the environment, as well as creating significant risks to human health.

Our engineers will work to isolate the source of fuel escape, but the second, more complicated step, requires the team to contain the fuel which has already escaped and prevent it from spreading further. OLS design, produce and operate many systems for land, water and air, that effectively contain the migration of fuel and fuel vapours.

Soil Vapour Extraction & Bioventing

Removing every trace of fuel after a fuel escape incident is not a sustainable option, with the fuel often penetrating deep into the ground beyond reasonable excavation processes. OLS have specially designed systems to extract fuel fumes from the ground so that any pollution risks and health risks presented by residual contamination are reduced to acceptable levels.

We strip out these harmful vapours by utilising vacuum pumps and compressors both extracting and delivering air into the ground removing excess fumes which contain lighter hydrocarbons, thus reducing the ongoing risk of groundwater and air pollution.

Site Investigations

At OLS we phase the site investigations so that accurate risk assessments can be produced from the initial site overview, followed by a more detailed site assessment, to intrusive post excavation soil, water, and air sampling.

Our experienced team work together with insurers to make sure that emergency works are identified so that the incident is brought under control while all aspects of a potential insurance claim are fully assessed.