Executing

Executing a demonstration project will involve many technology specific stages known to you as a specialist in the field of an individual technology. Nevertheless, there are many considerations which need to be thought about regardless of the specific technology and its in/ex situ categorisation.

Information provided from EURODEMO and also National guidance-type documents on technology specific remediation technologies are made available on the right.

Throughout a demonstration project, reporting should be considered the principal output, in order that all aspects are thoroughly considered from planning through to execution. Each consideration within the execution stage should be reported, which justifies the reasoning behind the decision making. In executing a demonstration project, a prescriptive list of considerations would not be applicable as one could not comprehensively address all applications for all conditions (particularly for all technology types). As a practitioner, a better generic evaluation of a demonstration would be to have answer to the following list of considerations, so that comprehensive reasoning can be compiled in the final report, which leads back to the technical specifications. The generic considerations list below is taken from The CL:AIRE Project Evaluation Guidance.

Consider your proposed technology application in relation to the following questions:

• Is there a need for the work to be done?
• Does it have real practical benefit?
• Has the concept been proven in the laboratory?
• Does this proposal further our understanding of how the process works?
• Does it build on previous work?
• Are the technical aims clear?
• Are they realistic?
• Is the methodology adequately described?
• Is it appropriate and sufficiently rigorous to enable the objectives to be met and sound conclusions to be drawn?
• Do you think that the project stands a good chance of being successful?
• Is the time scale realistic?
• Have the technical risks been considered?

Consider your proposed technology application in relation to the following questions:

• What are the specific site conditions (ground conditions, nature and extent of contaminants)?
• Are there variable forms of contaminants and what are they (concentration, physical/chemical form, associations)?
• What are the potential interferences from other contaminants?
• What is the site context and its likely influence (e.g. site access, available space, services, current land-use, site location)?
• What are the project time-scales, and effects of seasonality?
• How will you produce and report verification of progress and outcomes (e.g. sample design, sampling and analytical protocols, measurable changes, clear objectives)?
• What are the likely health, safety, and environmental impacts, regulatory issues?

The list below identifies pre-requisites which should be both considered and in place for a remediation project:

• have a clearly identified management structure, including reporting
• include a programme of work including:

   ° Milestones
   ° Review points
   ° Outputs

• clearly allocate roles and responsibilities
• have sufficient support resources to deal with problems
• include sufficient practical skills to deal with logistics of a field trial
• have the necessary experience and skills to deal with any problems
• consider the need for risk communication with the general public

Is the scope of the project described in terms of the size of the problem that the technology will tackle?

• Are the benefits that the project will provide to others adequately quantified (ie cost/benefit, or ideally risked cost benefit)?
• Is the scope of the project in terms of controlling variables (eg soil, climatic type) adequately described?
• Does the project provide something (eg knowledge, technology) that is not already available?