Environmental Pollution and Remediation

Abstract

In this Chapter, as the background and introduction of this whole book, the following matters are mainly described. Firstly, it is stated that many environmental pollution problems occur still now in the world by various causes such as industrial activities, our daily and natural activities, and accidents and disasters. In order to solve these environmental pollution problems, the necessity of the development of environmental remediation technology is described. Next, some pollution problems, which Japan experienced previously and is currently facing, are introduced, for example, Minamata disease, low-concentration pollution problems such as dioxins and endocrine disruptors, and contamination with radionuclides from the explosion of the nuclear power plants caused by the big tsunami. After that, the concept and classification of the environmental remediation technology are described. It is shown that remediation consists of three concepts: containment, separation, and decomposition, and that remediation technologies are also classified into two categories, In-situ and Ex-situ. Several representative techniques for containment, separation, and decomposition are introduced briefly. The combination of some remediation technologies and the evaluation are also described, when these remediation techniques will be applied to the actual contaminated site. It is discussed why further development of remediation technology is necessary and why the design of materials for remediation technology is necessary. Finally, a brief introduction for the structure of this book and chapters is given.