Peter W. Zimmermann, P.G.

Expert Support, Multiple Sediment and Surface Water Sites, Western New York Acting as strategic and technical lead for multiple New York State Superfund sites involving allegations of contribution of PAHs, PCBs, and metals in various forms to several miles of creeks and rivers. Leading investigation and source characterization of uplands locations and related pathway analysis with respect to adjacent waterbodies/sediment. Lead contact for all regulatory management actions and associated deliverables.

Multiparty River System Sediment Contamination Source Evaluation, Ohio Senior technical lead for development of a screening approach to assess several square miles of potential contamination source locations to creek and river systems leading to Lake Erie. The approach incorporated use of baseline source material and site operational characteristics, urban background interference estimates, constituent chemical forensic signatures, sediment fate and transport analysis, and numerical analysis techniques. Results yielded a prioritized set of source locations to be used in a regulatory-approved initial site investigation step for the project.

Testifying Expert Witness Support, Gasoline Release Liability and Cost Estimate, Newberry, South Carolina Served as lead litigation support and expert witness for successful plaintiff case in dispute concerning age, magnitude, and likely remedial costs for a gasoline release at a former retail service station. Conducted evaluation of petroleum release scenarios, fate and transport of LNAPL and dissolved-phase constituents, and extent of constituent and LNAPL plumes. Performed multiple remedial technology and cost analyses in support of client’s claims. Provided deposition preparation support and technical direction for deposing attorneys.

Superfund Site Cost Allocation Technical and Strategic Support, North Central New Jersey Served as technical and strategic lead for legal team in development and implementation of PRP opt-in contribution effort. Assignment required construction of conceptual fate and transport and constituent release scenarios with respect to the occurrence/location of constituents in groundwater, mass attributable to the respective scenarios, and estimated costs. Presented technical portion of presentation in initial meeting with more than 100 potential opt-in parties and provided technical foundation for individual and group settlements. The approach resulted in greater than 90 percent participation by opt-in parties.

Power Plant Transactional Cost Allocation and Risk Assessment, Massachusetts Served in the lead technical, regulatory role in assessing and finalizing the appropriate cost and environmental liability allocation and environmental risk management contract terms for an industrial client that eventually purchased and will operate a power generation plant within a several hundred acre Superfund site. This work required close integration of efforts with the business and environmental legal team for the client, the PRP, and the current operators of the plant. In addition, the work required review and assessment of all contracts, ground leases, purchase and sale agreements, environmental liability riders, current administrative orders on consent and draft amendments, and underlying business interruption insurance coverage. The transaction was successfully completed on schedule to the satisfaction of the involved parties.

Mediation Technical Support, Former Industrial Facility, Pitman, New Jersey Served as the expert technical support for an allocation of liability in connection with a release and subsequent dissolved-phase migration of chlorinated waste solvents. The assignment required that a peer-reviewed technical basis be developed on which to distinguish and age-date multiple solvent plumes and DNAPL source areas. In addition, performed predictive modeling to connect source/release locations to dissolved-phase plumes and estimate the respective liability of the participating parties.

Retail Redevelopment Site Investigation and Remedial Valuation, Queens, New York City Served as principal investigator and technical lead for Phase I and II investigations, feasibility studies, and remedial cost estimating at a former chemical manufacturing operation, totaling approximately 3 acres. Primary constituents of concern in soil and groundwater were mixed wastes composed of creosote, metals, arsenical and chlorinated pesticides, BTEX, and chlorinated hydrocarbons. Free phase product in the form of LNAPL and DNAPL was present at the site. Led the negotiation of the scope of the site characterization with NYSDEC; also led the regulatory outreach effort to negotiate favorable waste characterization determinations with NYSDEC and reduce projected costs for several major waste streams. Significant portions of one of the properties were underlain by LNAPL and/or DNAPL, depending on the particular constituent mix of the waste at various locations. Developed a conceptual site model for the properties that highlighted the data gaps necessary to refine migration pathways, their potential for completion, and target remediation endpoints. In connection with the property purchase, refined the site characterization approach to satisfy key risk management factors, and then prepared probable remediation costs and case closure options for insurance underwriting, eliminating overly conservative transaction escrow components and increasing the transaction value for both parties.

Former Oil Terminal Redevelopment, Western Long Island, New York Acted as project director for remedial investigations, feasibility studies, and remediation of affected soils and groundwater for a 3-acre inactive bulk oil storage terminal adjacent to an estuary on the north shore of western Long Island. The goal of the remediation was to prepare the site for development as an assisted living community. Prior to developer funding for the project, responsible for developing baseline environmental remediation cost and schedule projections in support of the remediation cost cap and pollution legal liability insurance policies, and participated in contractor and insurer negotiations regarding terms and pricing of those policies. Also led the technical and regulatory team in a successful defense of remediation costs in dispute resolution proceedings with the insurer in connection with the cost cap policy. The property was contaminated with fuel oils and gasoline from the former terminal operations. The petroleum constituents were present in the form of free product and residual product, as well as less-impacted soils and dissolved-phase groundwater constituents. The remediation consisted of demolition/decommissioning of the aboveground and subsurface terminal structures, including a 100,000-gallon aboveground storage tank, multiple underground tar and oil storage tanks with related NAPL, an oil/water separator and associated piping, contaminated wood piers, and concrete slabs and footings, as well as monitored natural attenuation of groundwater. A “no further action” approval was obtained from NYSDEC for this project under an expedited time frame using the state Voluntary Cleanup Program.

Inactive Oil Terminal Remediation and Compliance, Staten Island, New York Served as lead regulatory compliance and remediation consultant for a group developing a 400+ acre bulk oil storage terminal in Staten Island. More than 70 aboveground storage tanks and associated piping were present on the property with capacities up to 200,000 gallons each. The work required preparing scope, schedule, and ranges of cost estimates to remove the entire terminal infrastructure; remediating recoverable fraction of petroleum LNAPL up to 12 ft in saturated thickness in some locations; conducting human health and ecological risk assessments; and obtaining regulatory approval of the dissolved-phase petroleum remedy prior to development. Participated as developer representative for preparation of the full scope of the site characterization, demolition and tank/pipeline decommissioning work plans/pricing, LNAPL remediation, and related agency negotiations. Given the nature of the LNAPL constituents and predicted minimal impact to groundwater, remedial plans were able to target free and residual product removal and recycling/reuse as the primary remedial endpoint of the initial remedial planning.

National Project Director, Industrial Client, Multiple States Acted as consulting national project director for a Fortune 100 company with responsibility for transaction due diligence, regulatory compliance, remediation, and long-term care for multiple properties in 12 states. This work included managing environmental issues ranging from groundwater investigation oversight and PRP representation for Superfund areas in California to assessment of liabilities for portfolios in multibillion-dollar transactions. The project included multiple properties in a wide variety of settings involving assessment, remedial alternatives analysis, and remedial planning for properties contaminated with chlorinated solvents, including those with NAPL forms of the compounds and associated dissolved-phase constituents.