Overview

LiRo has been providing environmental services to the New York City Department of Design & Construction (DDC) for over two decades through several continuing contracts. Project assignments have included investigation, design, construction management, and inspection, ranging from routine assignments to some of the most complex assignments required by the City.

About the Project

LiRo is currently performing a wide range of environmental consulting services for the DDC under three distinct programs: Storage Tank Program, Remediation Program, and Environmental Requirements Contract.

Under several consecutive contracts for the DDC Storage Tank Program since the 1990s, LiRo’s storage tank design and construction specialists have been responsible for services related to the investigation, design, and construction as well as remediation of hundreds of underground and aboveground storage tank facilities throughout the five boroughs. Tank systems include gasoline and diesel motor fuel, heating oil, waste oil, motor oil, and hydraulic oil USTs and ASTs for almost every City agency, including firehouses, police precincts, hospitals, parks, DOS garages, DEP, and DOT sites.  LiRo has provided extensive expertise in tank compliance review, tank integrity inspection and tank testing, cathodic protection testing, tank program planning and tank design, tank construction, remediation design, fire suppression design, fire suppression construction and the related inspections thereto.

Under several consecutive contracts for the DDC Remediation Program since 1998, LiRo has been responsible for the investigation of hundreds of sites throughout the five boroughs. Under this program, detailed subsurface and hydrogeologic assessments were performed to develop remedial alternatives, track remedial progress, and obtain spill closure. LiRo has provided extensive drilling in NYC, sampling and characterization of subsurface soil and groundwater, completing accurate and comprehensive evaluations of subsurface conditions, spill response, developing innovative remedial designs, and working within sensitive operating environments. In addition, LiRo has conducted contaminant source investigations for chlorinated solvent plumes and contaminated seeps affecting sensitive waterways. In addition to our investigation services, LiRo has provided conceptual, preliminary, and detailed design plans and specifications, as well as inspected the construction and operated well over 50 remediation systems throughout the City.

Under several consecutive contracts for the DDC Office of Environmental and Geotechnical Services (OEGS), LiRo has successfully completed hundreds of work order assignments at a diverse range of sites throughout the City of New York. Under the OEGS contracts, LiRo has provided:

• Property-specific Phase I Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs)
• Phase I Corridor Assessment Reports (CARs)
• Phase II Environmental Site Investigations (ESIs)
• Phase II Subsurface Corridor Investigations (SCIs)
• Lead/asbestos surveys
• Asbestos designs
• Hazardous material (including radioactive materials) investigations
• Asbestos abatement monitoring
• Mold inspections
• Indoor air quality (IAQ) testing
• Spill response investigations
• Spill closure reporting

In addition, LiRo has provided specialty environmental consulting services under the OEGS contracts including:

• Underground storage tank (UST) closure design and oversight for the removal of chemical bulk storage USTs
• Hydrogeological investigations
• Pond sediment sampling in conformance to New York State Department of Environmental Conservation dredging requirements
• Community air monitoring plan (CAMP) implementation
• Sewer mapping/cleaning
• Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system maintenance/restoration
• Noise studies
• Decommissioning design for a former NYC Department of Sanitation incinerator
• Bacteriological sampling
• Soil remediation design
• Soil management plans
• Building water infiltration studies
• Geothermal well system studies
• Vapor intrusion evaluations
• Sub-slab vapor mitigation system design
• Hazardous waste investigations
• Health risk exposure evaluations
• Wetlands studies

Project Challenges & Solutions

In addition to the standard program work, LiRo has distinguished itself by providing emergency and/or specialty services whenever requested by DDC.

For our OEGS program work, LiRo was responsible for performing multiple assessments and investigations simultaneously, under aggressive project schedules.  The OEGS program workload frequently required up to eight assessments or investigations to be active at any given time.  LiRo demonstrated the ability to successfully manage, staff, and complete multiple work assignments effectively in accordance with the most demanding project schedules. LiRo has an in-depth understanding of environmental issues associated with a wide range of project settings within the NYC Metropolitan Area. Our broad range of environmental expertise and responsiveness has provided us the opportunity to provide specialized and emergency services to DDC wherever and whenever the need arises.

One of the key requirements of the remediation program is drilling safely in the New York Metro area. For the petroleum remediation program, LiRo developed a drilling placard program in the late 1990s. The placard program ensures that all utility mark-outs have been completed and documented, that NYCDEP water and sewer maps are in hand, that the drillers Job Hazard Assessment (JHA) has been completed, and that all needed permits are in place prior to mobilization. The drillers also provide traffic control, pedestrian barriers, and signage in accordance with MUTCD requirements and perform air-knife/vacuum excavating to ensure utility avoidance. Since we developed our placard program, LiRo has safely completed drilling work in the five boroughs of NYC.

Outcome

LiRo has supported the DDC with the City’s regulatory compliance and environmental studies and permitting in support of its projects for public buildings, infrastructure and safety, and site support throughout the Five Boroughs. LiRo has completed more than 800 tank decommissioning, replacement, and upgrade projects over the last several years under the Storage Tank Program. Over 120 spills have been closed under the Remediation Program.

Under the DDC OEGS program, LiRo has completed over 650 assignments including asbestos/lead/mold surveys, asbestos/lead/mold design projects, asbestos monitoring projects, Phase I CAR studies, Phase II SCIs, Phase I ESAs, Phase II ESIs, spill investigations, hazardous material (including radioactive materials) investigations, and other miscellaneous investigations.