EP 1110-1-24
15 Dec 00
(1) Strengths and Limitations of Signs. As with fences, signs can provide a direct warning
to the general public of the hazards associated with a site and are an effective means to warn
anyone who comes to a contaminated site of the hazards associated with an area. Signs may
provide sufficient public notice so that violators can be prosecuted under existing trespass laws.
As with fences, signs require routine inspection and maintenance in order to remain effective.
While not requiring as much maintenance as fences, signs do deteriorate over time and require
upgrade and/or replacement. The positioning of signs is always a critical matter to ensure that
they may be seen by a maximum number of people. A drawback of signs is that they do not stop
anyone from entering a site, they only inform. The property owner's desires, existing use of the
site and surrounding properties, funding for inspection and maintenance, and enforcement
responsibilities should also be considered before being including signs as part of an institutional
control program.
c. Soil Caps. Placing a cap on a contaminated site by covering it with concrete, asphalt,
or clay has been proven to be an effective physical barrier to public exposure to certain types of
residual contamination. Such an engineering control would have definite application for certain
OE-contaminated sites, if the cap is combined with a restriction on any future excavation at the
site. By combining the engineering control of the cap with the legal restriction of limiting future
use, the risk of the public coming into contact with OE is virtually eliminated.
(1) Strengths and Limitations of Soil Caps. Soil caps can be a very effective measure to
minimize exposure to OE. Soil caps can take on many forms and their presence does not
necessarily mean that a site cannot have some beneficial use. For instance, installing a parking
lot in an OE-contaminated area can provide a benefit to the local area as well as protect the local
population from exposure to OE items. The integrity of the cap must be maintained through
routine inspection and maintenance as well as through controls that restrict future excavation at
the site. Maintenance of the cap could be the owner's responsibility, particularly if the presence
of the cap enhances the development potential of a site.
C-4. Educational Controls. Educational controls include formal seminars and public notices.
a. Formal Education Programs. Educating the local community about the potential
exposure risks associated with an OE-contaminated site may be done through a variety of
methods. Formal education seminars may include periodic public education classes. The classes
may be given to a number of different audiences including open public forums, local government
and/or regulatory personnel, emergency response personnel, property owners, private developers
and real estate agents, or even school children at the local schools. The training seminars would
have to be tailored to meet the specific interests/concerns of the audience, but can be an effective
method to "spread the word" as to the nature and extent of the hazards associated with OE and
the precautions to be taken in the event that a person comes across an OE item. The training
classes may either be provided by personnel knowledgeable in the specific conditions of the site
or through the distribution of training videos to local civic organizations. In order to be
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