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q <br /> t Rodger Liston <br /> Darpetro Inc. <br /> 749 E. Charter Way, Stockton, California <br /> Page 3 of 7 <br /> The seepage rate, or the rate at which ground water moves across the site is dependant <br /> on the hydraulic conductivity, the gradient and effective porosity (as opposed to total <br /> porosity). As previously noted by EHD by letter dated 05 September 2003 , EHD believes <br /> the hydraulic conductivity determined by CGG may be somewhat overestimated due to <br /> the test conditions . The hydraulic conductivity was derived from a slug test performed by <br /> adding water to the well when the water table was within the screen interval , which may <br /> cause an overestimation of the hydraulic conductivity (Driscoll , 1986). Therefore, the <br /> estimated seepage rate of 6 . 3 feet per quarter is probably high and should be refined , <br /> but will serve as a working estimate. <br /> The amended SCM still makes much of the water sample that could not be collected at <br /> 45 feet below surface grade (bsg) in HP-2 , but was later collected at 55 feet bsg at the <br /> same location , thereby inferring that the lithology at 45 feet bsg could not transmit water, <br /> forcing the ground water to migrate around and under the tight soil . EHD has previously <br /> commented on this point by letter dated 05 September 2003; the same points still apply. <br /> CGG's belief that the rise of ground water elevation caused the ground water flow <br /> direction on the 701 Charter Way site to shift toward the south while ground water below <br /> 55 feet bsg continued to flow toward the northeast is unsupported by any observational <br /> data, such as water level measurements in wells screened separately above and below <br /> 55 feet bsg. <br /> The SCM-A noted that dissolved methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) concentrations <br /> increased from undetectable concentrations at 39 feet bsg to 2. 1 micrograms per liter <br /> (µg/1) at 50 feet bsg and to 16 .5 µg/I at 60 feet bsg in boring B-3 . CGG interprets these <br /> data as indicating northeastward flow of impacted ground water at 55 feet bsg and <br /> inferred that the known UST releases to the west were potentially the sources of the <br /> contaminants. Increasing contaminant concentrations with depth does not necessarily <br /> indicate an off-site source; it could just as easily be due to modest separation from an <br /> onsite source. Indeed, some sites exhibit higher concentrations at greater depth than at <br /> shallow zones in areas of the known source. Concerning the interpretation of the HP-2 <br /> and B-3 data, EHD notes again that several factors can influence the success of <br /> obtaining grab groundwater samples and that a number of factors can also influence <br /> contaminant distribution , i.e. , soil composition , vadose vs. saturated zone, proximity of <br /> source, etc. Contaminant concentration can also be influenced , often negatively, -by <br /> sample collection and handling techniques. <br /> EHD concurs with CGG's belief that the sand interval commonly encountered at 50 feet <br /> bsg could be a major conduit for contaminant migration and should be carefully <br /> assessed and monitored . Other sand intervals at greater depth identified on nearby sites <br /> may be present on the subject site too and are also of potential concern . <br /> EHD is unsure what CGG's statement in point 7 above means ("TPH and MTBE <br /> concentrations from the 641 E . Charter Way boring is toward our well MW-11 ") ; <br /> however, EHD notes that the data presented on the cross section was collected over a <br /> period of time measured in years and that grab ground water data was mixed with <br /> ground water monitoring well data ; therefore a consistent trend is not demonstrated. <br /> CGG reported that the concentrations of MTBE in monitoring well MW-1 on the 701 E. <br />