Specialties
Ecotoxicology and Ecological Risk Assessment; Microplastics; Sediment Assessment and Remediation; Aquatic toxicology
Practice Areas
Contaminated Site Assessment and Cleanup; Environmental Management
Education
MS, Environmental Assessment, North Carolina State University, 2015; BS, Environmental Technology, North Carolina State University, 2007
Client Service
Rachel specializes in emerging contaminants including per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and microplastics and is a practice leader for Geosyntec’s Microplastics group. She has designed studies for advancing passive sampling technologies for PFAS and performs ecological risk assessments in numerous USEPA regions and states. She is experienced with screening-level, refinement, baseline, and food-web modeling for terrestrial and aquatic environments for federal and industrial sites. Outside of the United States, Rachel has supported ecological risk assessments for sites in Australia, Canada, and Brazil. In addition to her general skills in environmental investigation, sample design, field sampling, data analysis, and risk assessment, Rachel has specialized experience in groundwater-surface water (porewater) interface investigations, sediment investigations, as well as in designing and implementing studies addressing aquatic in situ bioaccumulation and aquatic toxicity testing.
To advance Geosyntec’s state of the practice, Rachel participates in environmental coalitions, including the Interstate Technology & Regulatory Council’s Microplastics team, where she was contributed to the Microplastics Guidance Document chapters on sampling and analysis and health effects. Rachel has also participated in the Toxicity of Microplastics Explorer (ToMex) 2.0 update, led by the Southern Coastal California Water Resources Project, which included data mining and quality reviews on recent microplastics toxicity data for aquatic organisms. To further PFAS knowledge, Rachel is collaborating with SiREM Labs and the Naval Information Warfare Center on a United States Department of Defense Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) project to further demonstrate and validate a passive sampler for PFAS, to provide more accurate data for use in risk assessments.
With Geosyntec’s Microplastics group, Rachel is eager to tackle the challenges microplastics present and to provide pragmatic solutions for our clients and the environment.
Contact Rachel at rzajacfay@geosyntec.com.
