Environmental Mobile Labs and Direct Push Sampling for Soil Gas Surveys.
H&P's mobile laboratories are full-size, self-sufficient vehicles that generate EPA level 3 and level 4 data. Typical capabilities include analysis of soil, water, and vapor samples for organic compounds, metals, and a limited suite of inorganic compounds.
H&P's fixed-base laboratories are certified by the EPA / Local State agency and specialize in rapid turnaround. Typical capabilities include analysis of soil, water, and vapor samples for organic compounds, metals, and inorganic compounds.
H&P Mobile GeoChemistry, Inc. offers state-of-the-art soil gas surveys, using a variety of techniques including active, passive, and surface flux chamber methodology. H&P Mobile GeoChemistry, Inc. is the only firm in the country that offers this variety of soil gas methods. H&P Mobile GeoChemistry, Inc. has completed more than 100,000 soil gas survey points at a variety of industrial, residential, and military sites across the country and the world.
H&P's STRATAPROBETM is a multi-media sampling system capable of reaching 50 feet below the ground surface. STRATAPROBETM uses the latest technology in hydraulic drive point sampling systems to collect soil, water and deep soil gas samples. In addition, H&P Mobile GeoChemistry, Inc. owns a variety of limited access sampling systems, including all-terrain vehicles for rough terrains and portable probes for indoor locations. H&P's client list includes large and small environmental consultants, major oil and other private companies, and the Department of Defense and Department of Energy.
H&P Mobile GeoChemistry, Inc. has extensive insurance coverages including $3 million of errors & omissions, general liability, pollution liability, and auto/vehicle coverages.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------KEY PERSONNEL
H&P Mobile GeoChemistry, Inc. has an abundance of trained professionals within the system, including Ph.D.'s in chemistry, registered geologists, certified water drillers, certified geophysicists, and numerous chemists, geologists, and engineers.
Janis Villarreal, B.S.
LAB DIRECTOR
B.S. Chemistry, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 1978
MBA National University, San Diego, CA 1983
Ms. Villarreal is the Laboratory Director for H&P Mobile Geochemistry, Inc. She specializes in chemical analysis for environmental laboratories. Prior to H&P, she served as the Lab Director for 10 years, managing 5 supervisors, 60 chemists and technicians for a mid-size environmental laboratory. Ms. Villarreal has extensive experience in the operation and trouble shooting of complex analytical instrumentation which makes her an excellent lab director for H&P’s mobile lab operation. Since she has worked for H&P, she has performed work and supervised work at over thousand of hazardous waste sites in California, Nevada, Arizona and the Pacific. Ms. Villarreal currently manages 10 mobile labs and one fixed base facility and has worked with H&P since 2003.
Certifications
OSHA 29 CFR 1910.120 / RCRA 40
LPS Safety Training
API Worksafe
National Safety Council Defensive Driving
Annual Hazardous Material Medical Surveillance
Dave Balkenbush, B.S.
SUPERVISOR FOR SOIL GAS SAMPLING / DPT DRILLING
Mesa State College, Grand Junction, CO
Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences, 1994
Mr. Balkenbush is the Qualifying Employee for our California C57 License and serves as the Supervisor of all drilling and sampling activities for H&P Mobile Geochemistry, Inc. He specializes in soil gas sampling for environmental projects and has worked with H&P for over 10 years. He is responsible for the training of all sampling technicians and drillers for soil, groundwater and soil gas sampling using direct push technology. He has conducted thousands of projects throughout California, Arizona and for very sensitive, high profile projects in other states. Mr. Balkenbush is considered an expert in soil gas sampling for both on site and off site analysis. He currently manages 5 direct push rigs.
Certifications
OSHA 29 CFR 1910.120 / RCRA 40
LPS Safety Training
API Worksafe
National Safety Council Defensive Driving
Annual Hazardous Material Medical Surveillance
Mark Burke, B.S.
QUALITY ASSURANCE OFFICER
B.S. Chemistry, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 1992
Mr. Burke is the QA Officer for H&P Mobile Geochemistry, Inc. and he specializes in chemical analysis for environmental laboratories with an emphasis on soil gas samples. Prior to H&P, he served as a lab technician in the Quality Assurance department and was responsible in establishing quality control protocols, interpreted regulations and established safety guidelines for chemical handling and storage. At H&P his previous responsibilities included the on-site analyses of fuel and VOC environmental samples. This included the performance of chemical extraction and analysis of soil, water and soil vapor samples. Methods included EPA 8260B, 8021, 8015 and 418.1 using GC/MS, GC and IR. His extensive experience in the field included the requirement and skills to repair and manage test equipment in the field as well as manage the sample control, QA/QC protocols and the extensive use of the LIMS system for the company. Mr. Burke’s experience in on site environmental analysis as well as his experience in soil gas analysis makes him ideal as the QA Officer. He has worked with H&P since 1994.
Noah Unsworth
TECHNICAL MANAGER
Louise Adams
OWNER
TECHNICAL CONSULTANTS TO H&P
Blayne Hartman, Ph.D.
Dr. Blayne Hartman received his Ph.D. in geochemistry from the University of Southern California. Since entering private industry, he has worked extensively with surface geochemical methods for environmental & exploration applications.
Dr. Hartman's soil gas experience is second to none. He is a nationally recognized expert on soil vapor sampling, soil vapor analysis, and vapor intrusion. He has provided training on soil gas methods and vapor intrusion to County and State regulatory agencies in over 25 states, many of the EPA regions, the DOD, and numerous stakeholder groups and consultants. He has written numerous articles on the collection, analysis, and interpretation of soil vapor data, including chapters in four textbooks. He has participated in technical workgroups on soil vapor methods for CA-EPA, CA Regional Water Boards, County of San Diego, ITRC & ASTM; has reviewed/edited instructional manuals for the EPA OUST and Superfund groups, and lectured on soil gas methods in the EPA-OSWER vapor intrusion seminars. Over the past four years, Dr. Hartman has been a contributing author/editor to vapor intrusion and soil gas guidance documents to federal EPA, CA-EPA, San Diego County, ITRC, DOD, API, and more than 20 individual State documents.
He was the co-founder of H&P Mobile GeoChemistry, a business partnership offering on-site laboratory analysis, direct push environmental sampling, soil vapor surveys, and vapor intrusion services.
Copies of many of his articles and recent presentations can be found on the Articles page and Presentations page of this website.
James E. Picker, Ph.D.
Dr. Picker's technical and managerial experience was gained while employed by S-Cubed in Lo Jolla, CA, where he was Head of the Chromatography and Wet Chemistry Section. At S-Cubed, Dr. Picker developed a field portable gas chromatograph for the determination of PCB's in dielectric fluid using automated GC pattern recognition. He also proposed and managed a project for the Air Force to design an automated gas chromatograph/data system for the determination of trichloroethylene in water. At S-Cubed, Dr. Picker was also in charge of gas chromatography at S-Cubed's specially designed Chemical Surety Materials (CSM) facility handling extremely toxic material in support of chemical munitions destruction. Dr. Picker left S-Cubed to become a field engineer with the Hewlett-Packard Company. Dr. Picker has also been an instructor in the Hazardous Materials Management Program at the University of California, San Diego Extension.
Dr. Picker was the managing partner of H&P Mobile GeoChemistry. As managing partner, he had the primary control over all business-related operations. In addition Dr. Picker was responsible for the analytical laboratory operations including data handling and information management. He was responsible for the design, development and implementation of all analytical chemistry services for H&P. He has designed, developed, built and placed into commercial service more than eight operating mobile laboratories and four fixed base laboratory operations.
Rebecca L. Johnson
Ms. Johnson was an owner and the CFO and chief administrator for H&P Mobile GeoChemistry. She has over twenty years experience in the environmental laboratory business. In the early 1980s, Ms. Johnson was employed by S-Cubed in the organic extraction and pesticide laboratories. She quickly became the head gas chromatographer in charge of the pesticide fraction of their EPA Contract Laboratory Program (CLP). She was next employed at Pacific Analytical Inc. of Carlsbad, CA (PA) as a GC-MS operator and later was in charge of PA's CLP program as well.
In 1990, she and Dr. Picker founded Mobile One Laboratories (MOL), dedicated to performing on-site GC and GC/MS. MOL was the first "mobile lab only" company to obtain certification by the state of California as an environmental mobile lab. She operated mobile labs and ran MOL until the joint venture H&P was founded. She has served in the above capacities for H&P for eight years.
