Environmental risk assessment for groundwater contamination through integrated fuzzy techniques

This study developed a new risk assessment approach based on fuzzy modelling and fuzzy relation analysis for analyzing environmental risks associated with groundwater contamination due to leaking underground storage tanks. Results from a case study that located in western Canada indicated that reasonable solutions under different system conditions could be generated through the proposed methodology. The fuzzy modelling can be used to examine the impacts of system uncertainties on model outputs. These impacts became more significant under a lower degree of system plausibility, leading to higher variations in risk assessment. Conversely, a higher degree of plausibility will result in more deterministic result. The subsequent risk assessment based on fuzzy modelling is useful for comprehensively evaluating risks within a system containing many uncertain factors with complicated interrelationships. This allows engineers to have a systematic and consistent approach for assessing uncertainty impacts and environmental risks as well as generate desirable site remediation actions.