Background: NCHRP Project 25-09, "Environmental Impact of Construction and Repair Materials on Surface and Ground Waters," was completed in June 2000. It delivered a validated methodology for assessing the environmental impact of highway construction and repair materials on surface and ground water under six general highway reference environments. This methodology includes: (1) a set of comprehensive bioassay protocols that directly measure the toxicity of leachates from highway construction and repair materials on two target organisms, the water flea, Daphnia magna, and the freshwater algae, Selenastrum capricornutum, and (2) the IMPACT model that can estimate the fate and transport of such leachates in typical highway environments. The IMPACT model is based on an extensive database of bioassay toxicity results for materials ranging from common construction and repair products to waste and recycled materials proposed for use in highway construction.

A 1-day, pilot workshop was held in December 2000 to introduce the new methodology to environmental specialists from state and federal agencies and the private sector. To provide awareness of this new technology and promote its use, there is a need to present an overview of the research products and their application to a broad audience and, further, to conduct additional 1-day workshops at locations in each of the four AASHTO regions, so that the workshops are accessible to the greatest number of technical practitioners as possible. Finally, the workshop materials must be made available to a wider audience through the development of CD-ROM and Internet-based media intended for self-training purposes.

Objective: The objective of this project is to develop and conduct a multimedia program to disseminate the findings, products, and applications of NCHRP Project 25-09, "Environmental Impact of Construction and Repair Materials on Surface and Ground Waters."

Tasks: Accomplishment of the project objective will require the following tasks.

(1) Develop, publicize, and present an open, 3-hour, national teleconference in the first half of 2002 that summarizes the findings and applications of the products of NCHRP Project 25-09 for the transportation and environmental communities. (2.) Develop a plan to place the Project 25-09 products, reports, and teleconference materials on the Internet to reach the wider transportation and environmental audience. At a minimum, coordinate with a UTC to place this information on its website with links to other transportation and environmental sites. (3) Present a 1-hour overview developed from the teleconference materials at five to seven national meetings, conferences, and committee meetings sponsored by AASHTO, FHWA, TRB, the Association of State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Administrators (ASIWPCA) , and other appropriate organizations. (4) Develop and present four 1-day workshops, one in each AASHTO region, to train technical practitioners in the application of the IMPACT model and the supporting testing methodology. Each workshop shall contain at least one case-study example illustrating how the IMPACT model is applied in actual practice. This training shall be fee-based and hands-on, incorporating appropriate computer learning facilities for a maximum of 25 to 30 participants per workshop. A workshop manual including at least one case study for each of the six highway reference environments treated by the IMPACT model shall be required. (5.) Prepare a master CD-ROM for NCHRP publication of the contents and supporting materials of the Task 4 workshop in an interactive form for self-training purposes.

Status: The project is complete. The project panel is reviewing a draft final report in the form of a CD-ROM conatining: (1)
a summary of the NCHRP 25-09 project tasks, research findings, and products; (2) a short description of construction and repair material (C&R) evaluation methodology with a flow chart illustrating the methodology framework; (3) interactive user guides for laboratory leaching and environmental condition tests and for fate and transport model IMPACT; (4) downloadable research products including laboratory test protocols, IMPACT model and five volumes of project reports; and (5) PowerPoint presentation slides used during the regional workshops conducted as a part of the Outreach and Training program. Publication of the CD-ROM as media or a download from the Internet is planned in fall 2005.

Product Availability: None available at this time.