DEME Environmental has opened its new Soil Wash installation at Schiphol Airport (Amsterdam Airport Schiphol), enabling PFAS-impacted soil to be cleaned and reused in future projects.
"With an expected capacity to make approximately 200,000 tons of soil suitable for reuse in the coming years, the facility showcases DEME Environmental’s innovative and pioneering approach to PFAS remediation, combining advanced treatment technologies with circular soil management solutions represents an important step towards more sustainable and circular soil remediation solutions," the company said.
PFAS has been a challenge for projects across the Netherlands for years.
Useful resource
During the process, PFAS is removed from the soil by utilising its solubility in water. The PFAS is then removed from the water through a purification process.
According to AMS Schiphol, this is expected to yield approximately 160,000 tons of reusable soil. A smaller residual stream still contains too much PFAS for reuse and is therefore sent to an authorized processor.
In this way, some of the PFAS is removed from the environment and fewer raw materials are lost.