Sunbelt Rentals Temporary Structures Conquers Toxic Threat to Water Supply

What happens when a toxic nuisance becomes a threat? That is the situation a client of ours faced recently.

A toxic landfill had simmered since closing in the 80s. Officials discovered the massive landfill was leaking toxic chemicals into the ground. The leak posed a real threat to the water supply of people living along its borders. The only solution was to immediately begin the excavation and removal of the contaminated soil to a safe location.

An environmental remediation company, located in the northern U.S, experienced the power of Sunbelt Rentals firsthand when they asked the team to partner on this toxic landfill project. They needed a temporary containment structure – and they needed it fast. Lives depended on it.

Why Sunbelt Rentals

Sunbelt Rentals has over 20 years’ experience partnering with environmental remediation companies to provide innovative site shelter and containment solutions for major environmental projects.

The Challenge

The greatest challenge for the remediation client was the size of the landfill and its proximity to nearby neighborhoods. In the decades since the landfill closed, subdivisions had popped up on the outskirts of the area.

The client needed the containment site to be airtight and configured with an air purification system, so no fumes escaped into the air. They feared locals living in the surrounding area might panic if they smelled unpleasant fumes coming from the excavation site.

The landfill measured over an acre and a half and appeared from drawings to be a vast curved pit. The entire landfill site required coverage. They needed an ample enough space inside for the remediation operation to run smoothly, which included extracting the soil, bringing trucks inside to load containers and safely removing them from the site.

The client’s structure needed:
Air-purification System Installation	Personnel doors for employees	Entrance and Exit Access for Trucks	Less than a Six-month Lease

The Solution

The site visit proved just how challenging this project would be. The sheer enormity of the landfill and the client's confirmation that they wanted to cover the entire area with a single structure, meant building a new, completely customized clear span structure.

The project manager met with core Sunbelt Rentals team members before confirming the deliverable. Once a designer and engineering expert weighed in on making the containment space structurally sound, the designer created a computer-aided design (CAD) concept. The project manager presented an enhanced design-engineered version of the Sunbelt Rentals Tension Series™, (MTS™) structure to the client. The MTS™ is designed to be quickly installed for temporary or permanent projects, providing a quick turnaround timeline for clients.

The team at Sunbelt Rentals goes the extra mile every day to create innovative, one-of-a-kind solutions. The containment structure was no exception. Sunbelt Rentals' team created custom components on-site, including the custom-designed "pie slice" shaped pieces that were used to assemble the curve in the fabric structure. Additionally, Sunbelt Rentals built extended top frames for the clear span structure and produced horizontal purlins specifically for this project.

Before installation, the client removed the grass (overburden) covering the landfill, leaving the soil there soft and potentially unstable. Sunbelt Rentals' team made an additional site visit and performed a "pull test" to ensure the clear span structure could be secured to the ground. The test was successful, and the installation began on time.

It was the confidence I had in the Sunbelt Rentals team that made it easy for me to promise our client that this solution would do exactly what they needed it to do.

Trip Gintz, Project Manager, Sunbelt Rentals

The installation took the Sunbelt Rentals team 28 days to complete. They finished on schedule, and the remediation team began the important work of excavating the landfill on time.

The Result

The containment clear span structure for the remediation project is currently operational and the remediation team has extracted over 500 barrels of waste. The project is making a positive environmental difference for families in the surrounding area.

The MTS™ will remain on-site until November when the containment project is complete.

The Takeaways

Creating a cleaner, healthier and safer future is a big job. Environmental solution experts facetoxic challenges every day. Their preferred partner profile is avendor that understands the importance of the mission and can handle any obstacle.

Sunbelt Rentals prides itself on creative problem-solving, industry experience, and dedication to safety and the environment. No problem is too complicated, no task too big, and no customer needs too high for Sunbelt Rentals' army of innovative experts.

No matter the situation, we have you covered.