Comprehensive Environmental Remediation Services from AES

What counts as environmental remediation?

Environmental remediation is the cleanup of pollution in soil, groundwater, surface water, sediment and other natural materials. It covers testing, containment, treatment, removal and disposal. The aim is a site that is safe for people and legal to use, whether that means a new building, a sale or a return to service.

AES describes its work as helping “contain, treat, and manage contaminant disposal.” Its project managers start with a site evaluation and contamination assessment, then plan the scope to fit your goals and budget.

Remediation is a wider job than abatement. Abatement usually means reducing or removing one hazard, such as asbestos or lead. Remediation deals with contamination that has spread into the ground, water or a waste stream. The abatement vs remediation glossary entry and the asbestos abatement vs remediation comparison explain the difference. For building hazards, see asbestos abatement and lead abatement. This page covers the ground, the tanks and the waste.

Problem	What AES does	Page
Polluted soil	Test, excavate or treat, dispose, restore	Soil remediation
Polluted groundwater	Investigate, extract and treat, monitor	Groundwater treatment
Old or leaking tanks	Clean, remove, decontaminate, dispose	Tank removal
Waste on site	Characterize, sort, package, haul	Hazardous waste disposal
Chemical or radiological material	Inventory, sample, dispose at licensed facilities	Hazmat remediation

How is contaminated soil tested, treated and disposed of?

Soil work follows four steps: assessment and sampling, removal or in situ treatment, transport to an authorized facility, and site restoration. Testing comes first because the results decide the method, the volume and where the soil can legally go.

Contaminated soil is dirt polluted by human activity or natural sources. Common culprits include heavy metals, pesticides, solvents and petroleum products. Dead plants, strange color or odors can hint at a problem, but only lab results confirm it. AES says its soil contamination testing uses methods such as X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and gas chromatography.

Here is how a typical soil job flows:

1. Assess and sample. Project managers collect samples and map the type and extent of contamination.
2. Choose a method. The choice is excavation or in situ treatment. Excavation removes soil with excavators and loaders. In situ treatment treats the soil where it sits. AES also lists bioremediation and soil stabilization.
3. Transport and dispose. Excavated soil goes to authorized disposal facilities in specialized containers.
4. Restore. Clean fill or backfill replaces the removed soil.

AES also offers air knife and hydrovac excavation, which dig with air or water and vacuum instead of a bucket. These tools help when you need to expose utilities or work in tight areas without damaging what is underneath. See soil remediation, contaminated soil disposal and what is contaminated soil. The soil remediation glossary entry gives a short definition.

How is contaminated groundwater treated?

Groundwater treatment starts with a site investigation, then extracts, treats or contains the water. The right system depends on the contaminant, how fast the water moves and where it travels. Contaminants can spread far from the source, so mapping the plume comes before any treatment design.

AES lists three common approaches on its groundwater page:

• Pump-and-treat. Pumps pull groundwater up. Filtration and adsorption clean it above ground. The clean water goes back to the aquifer or to a discharge point.
• In situ treatment. Treatment agents go into the subsurface to capture or immobilize the contaminant without large-scale digging.
• Containment barriers. Physical or chemical barriers stop contaminated groundwater from moving off site.

AES also designs, builds, leases and maintains remediation systems for contaminated sites. A system on a lease can make sense when treatment will run for months or years and you do not want to own the equipment.

Groundwater work often follows a soil or tank release. A leaking tank, for example, can reach both. For PFAS, a separate set of methods applies. See contaminated groundwater treatment and PFAS remediation.

How are underground, aboveground, oil, fuel and septic tanks removed?

Tank removal follows a set order: assess the tank, get permits, empty and clean it, excavate or lift it, then transport and dispose of it. If the tank leaked, the soil and groundwater around it come next. AES handles underground and aboveground tanks.

Tank type	What to know	AES page
Oil tank	Used for heating or industrial fuel storage. Leaks can contaminate soil.	Oil tank removal
Fuel tank	Old or unused tanks need cleaning and certified disposal.	Fuel tank disposal
Gas tank	Removal and disposal with permitting handled.	Gas tank disposal
Septic tank	Pump out, remove, haul, backfill and grade.	Septic tank removal
Asbestos-containing tank	Needs abatement-grade handling.	Asbestos tank removal

AES says a tank job includes industrial tank cleaning, tank demolition and disposal, and decontamination of the site. Crews drain and clean residue first so the work is safe for workers and the environment. For underground tanks, they excavate around the tank, remove it and check the surrounding soil.

A regulated underground storage tank (UST) adds state steps. Read the next section for the notice rule. The tank removal and closure guide walks through the full process, and the main tank removal page lists services.

What does Missouri DNR require when a regulated tank is closed?

For a regulated underground storage tank, Missouri DNR calls for a closure notice at least 30 days before closure activities begin. DNR should approve the notice before work starts. Confirm with your contractor and DNR who files it.

DNR’s page states the rule this way: “Filing a Closure Notice for Underground Storage Tanks MO 780-2121 form with the department at least 30 days before closure activities.” The page also says the department should approve the notice before closure begins. This is current as of October 2026, and forms change, so check the DNR storage tank closure page before you file.

Plan around these points:

• Timing. Add the 30-day notice period to your schedule.
• Which tanks. The rule covers regulated tanks. Small heating oil tanks and septic tanks may follow different rules. Ask your contractor to confirm.
• Leaks. If testing finds a release, cleanup becomes part of the project. Soil and groundwater work can run longer than the tank removal itself.

AES says it handles permitting and compliance on fuel tank jobs and that its work follows federal, state and local regulations. Send AES the tank size, age, contents and location, and ask for a written scope that lists the notice, permits and disposal.

What waste streams does AES haul?

AES hauls and disposes of hazardous, medical, laboratory, chemical, automotive, construction and manufacturing waste. It also handles universal, non-hazardous, special and radiological waste. Each stream has its own page and its own handling rules. Hazardous waste follows tighter rules than ordinary trash.

Waste stream	Examples AES lists	AES page
Hazardous	Toxic, acidic, caustic, explosive and off-spec product	Hazardous waste disposal
Medical	Sharps, pathological and pharmaceutical waste	Hazardous medical waste disposal
Laboratory	Reagents, solvents, biological waste, lab packs	Laboratory waste disposal
Chemical	Industrial and lab chemicals, hazardous and non-hazardous	Chemical waste disposal
Automotive	Used oil, tires, batteries, scrap metal recycling	Automotive waste disposal
Construction	Concrete, brick, wood, metal, drywall	Construction waste disposal
Manufacturing	Hazardous and non-hazardous waste, e-waste, bulbs, batteries	Manufacturing waste disposal

The near-duplicate page hazardous material disposal covers the same ground from a materials angle. Healthcare buyers can also see how AES serves healthcare environmental needs.

Two practical points help every waste customer. First, characterize the waste before you pack it. Accurate labels keep the shipment moving. Second, keep the paperwork. Disposal records protect you if a regulator asks later.

What does a hazmat remediation job include?

A hazmat job identifies, contains, removes and disposes of hazardous materials. AES lists waste characterization, inventory, sampling and analysis, then sorting, packaging, loading, transport and disposal at licensed facilities. The steps run in that order so nothing leaves the site unidentified.

AES groups its hazmat remediation work into five areas:

• Hazardous waste remediation. Off-spec product destruction, acidic and caustic waste, toxic waste, pharmaceutical waste and incineration where it is the right method.
• Universal waste. Tritium exit signs, smoke detectors and electronic waste.
• Non-hazardous and special waste. Including disposal at AES’s Transfer, Disposal, and Storage Facility (TDSF), and PFAS and aqueous film-forming foam disposal.
• Radiological waste. Radioactive waste and NORM, which means naturally occurring radioactive material.
• PCB cleanup and disposal. Polychlorinated biphenyls are hazardous to people and the environment, and AES follows safety protocols for them.

For urgent PFAS releases, see emergency PFAS cleanup and PFAS waste disposal.

Hazmat work often runs alongside other services. A building teardown may uncover contaminated soil or tanks. A plant closure may leave chemicals and tanks. AES can bundle these under one contractor. See demolition for that path and services for the full list.

Next step

Tell AES what you found: a tank, stained soil, a waste inventory or a site you plan to sell. Call (314) 865-2662 or use the contact page to request a quote. Ask for a written scope that names the testing, notices, permits and disposal route.