Golder Associates Innovative Applications (GAIA) Inc. is a specialist contracting company and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Golder Associates Ltd., part of the Golder Associates global group of companies. With over 3,000 employees in 90 offices around the world, Golder Associates is a premier global group of consulting companies, specializing in ground engineering and environmental science.
GAIA was formed in 1997 to respond to a growing demand from Golder Associates Ltd. clients for turnkey projects. The Golder Associates group of companies performs studies and engineers solutions. GAIA applies the solutions on site. Through the Golder-GAIA connection, clients receive highly professional, added-value service, with one project manager and one contact, from the initial study to the final application, both across Canada and around the globe.
 Commercial activities
BETTER AIR
GAIA, in close collaboration with Golder, is establishing an important place for itself in this very significant market. Its experience and expertise help clients achieve their atmospheric emission goals in many ways. GAIA is as involved in the development of technologies used for the control and reduction of these emission. GAIA is also engaged in the design, construction, operation and maintenance of systems for the recovery and reuse of biogas as well as other gaseous effluents.
GAIA develops and applies on creative, concrete solutions to improve this vital resource:
- Control of industrial emissions and biogas
- Emissions and biogas treatment and revaluation
- Monitoring and follow-up
BETTER WATER
For the benefit of its clients and partners, GAIA puts its knowledge and experience to work towards the improvement of water quality through the execution of projects such as:
- Groundwater treatment
- Wastewater treatment
- Treatment of mining property water
- Protection of industrial water intake
- Water supply
- Construction of aquatic fauna habitats
BETTER SOIL AND ROCK
GAIA undertakes projects involving ground engineering and the development of underground resources. The company’s experience and expertise have been utilized to facilitate sound management and rehabilitation of mining sites, to restore contaminated sites and to manage environmental incidents. Furthermore, GAIA undertakes ground improvement techniques such as stabilization, injection, densification and retention for a wide range of soils. Whether they are involved in the development of mining, industrial, or other types of properties, GAIA’s clients benefit from innovative and efficient services for all their needs related to the management of soil and rock.
- Environmental site restoration
- Rehabilitation of mining sites
- Geotechnical improvement of soil
- Plants for mine tailings encapsulation
- Treatment platform for contaminated soils
- Mitigation of mining risks
BETTER WASTE MANAGEMENT
The concept of waste material has evolved greatly over the past few years. What was recently considered mere waste is now viewed as a source of potential energy, elements for recycling, or as material that still must be buried or contained – but in a manner that provides optimal protection for the environment.
In the mining industry, extraction and refinement processes generate production waste that can be inert, toxic or leachable. GAIA has developed a complete range of turnkey services and expertise now recognized at the international level. Clients can count on GAIA for understanding and execution from the design and construction of mining waste facilities to their closure. Its experience and regulatory knowledge make GAIA an ideal partner for clients in this industry.
In terms of mass consumption – either residential or industrial – GAIA has been able to innovate for the benefit of its clients and the environment by rethinking approaches to waste management. GAIA always adopts a proactive stance and integrates the application of procedures for waste revaluation and reuse. The company’s wide-ranging expertise is evident at every level, whatever the area of its operations:
- Biogas management
- Renewable energy projects management
- Landfill facilities construction, management and closure
- Mining waste facilities construction, management and closure
Achievements
Here are a number of achievements of GAIA and Golder Associates:
Groundwater treatment by vacuum enhanced recovery, Ontario, Canada
Problem:
Discovery of light hydrocarbons in the soil and disolved in the groundwater
Solutions:
- Excavation of 3,500 m3 of soil
- Treatment of more than 7,000,000 litres of groundwater (65 ppm of BTEX in total) over a six month period
- Use of a vacuum enhanced recovery system to accelerate the volatilisation of contaminants in the vadose zone and to only pump the top two metres of impacted groundwater, so as to avoid any significant draw-down of the groundwater table
Clean-up of a free phase diesel plume, Quebec, Canada
Problem:
Clean-up of a free phase diesel plume due to a break in a diesel pipeline
Solutions:
- Vacuum enhanced recovery, using pressure differentials to mobilise the LNAPL without pumping large volumes of groundwater, thereby reducing treatment costs
- 380,000 litres of free phase diesel were recovered during a 20 month operation
Bio-restoration of soils contaminated with hydrocarbons, Quebec, Canada
Problem:
Soils contaminated with hydrocarbons, mineral grease and benzene on the site of a factory manufacturing acetate
Solutions:
- Excavation of 1,150 m3 of soil and forming a biopile: successive layers with piping to aerate and maintain humidity
- Degradation of hydrocarbons by use of a hydrocarbonoclast bacteria population
Restoration of groundwater quality, Quebec, Canada
Problem:
Groundwater contaminated with benzene and acetone on the site of an acetate plant
Solutions:
- Construction of a physical barrier (soil/bentonite slurry wall)
- Installation of a hydraulic barrier
- Active treatment of groundwater
Recovery of hydrocarbons using vacuum enhanced recovery, Quebec, Canada
Problem:
Recovery of free phase hydrocarbons (LNAPL)
Solutions:
- Recovery using vacuum enhanced recovery techniques, of a plume of free phase hydrocarbons, comprised in a surface area of 18,800 sq. metres and of an estimated volume of 270,000 litres
- Nearly 15,000 litres of product have been extracted in six months of operation
Dismantling and installation of petroleum storage tanks
Site remediation by excavation and off-site disposal
Emergency interventions
Design and construction of containment cells for contaminated soils and wastes
In situ treatment of contaminated stream and river-bed sediments using the LimnofixTM process for which Golder Associates hold exclusive rights
Principal strength:
Remediation systems equipped with automated and integrated communication capabilities
The remediation systems built, operated and maintained by GAIA are equipped with sophisticated communication systems and remote controls which allow continuous monitoring of remediation projects, whatever the technology or equipment used. Remote control system capabilities are facilitated by intensive use of computer software to build graphic interfaces that are realistic and user friendly for operators and external observers.
- AIR
- WATER
- ROCK/SOIL
- WASTE MANAGEMENT
Markets
The company gives great importance to building business relationships based on confidence and mutual respect. It seeks to create mutually advantageous partnerships with clients and strategic alliances with sub-contractors and suppliers who share the same preoccupations for quality, safety and health protection.
Existing markets
Canada:
- British Columbia
- Ontario
- Quebec
Target markets
- Canada
- Europe