Project Code of Accounts — Environmental Remediation

What this standard adds

The general principles (Lesson 2) hold, but remediation has an unusual character that shapes its coding: the project is phased and discovery-driven (recall the remediation classification, Cost Estimating Lesson 11), and cost scales with the amount of contamination handled rather than physical structures built. The code must follow that logic.

How remediation projects are coded

• Phase — Investigation → remedial design → remedial action → monitoring. The primary dimension, each phase distinct in cost.
• Media — Soil, groundwater, sediment, soil vapour — the contaminated medium being treated, a key cost driver.
• Remedy / technology — Excavation, in-situ treatment, pump-and-treat, capping — the chosen approach (Lesson 11's remedy selection).
• Area & cost type — The site area / contamination zone, plus the usual labour/material/equipment/subcontract split.

A remediation code, field by field

Putting it to work — and closing Module 4A

For a remediation project, structure the code of accounts around phase first, then media, remedy, and area; tie costs to media volume so unit rates can be tracked; and give long-term monitoring its own visible phase. Align it with how the cleanup was estimated, so the discovery-driven scope changes (Lesson 11) can be tracked against plan.

Nine things to remember

1. 124R-22 tailors the code of accounts to remediation — phase, media, remedy, area.
2. Phase is the primary dimension — investigate → design → remediate → monitor.
3. Cost is media-volume driven, not structure-driven — code so volume ties to cost.
4. Media matters — soil, groundwater, sediment, vapour each cost differently.
5. Code the remedy/technology — excavation, in-situ, pump-and-treat, capping.
6. Tie cost to volume treated — so actual unit rates can be compared to estimate.
7. Give long-term monitoring its own phase — a substantial, easily-forgotten cost tail.
8. Align with the cleanup estimate so discovery-driven scope changes track against plan.
9. Module 4A complete — controls plan + code of accounts + OBS/RAM = the control structures.