By: Oscar Gómez
The idea behind the title of this article concerns the development of tools that allow the evaluation, analysis and interpretation of intervention scenarios in the Amazonian environment, mainly in those activities focused on the use of fossil fuels.
It is undeniable that the use of fossil fuels contained in the subsoil always involves generating a disturbance. When it comes to a biome such as the rainforest, particularly in the Amazonian environment, where biological and social elements, dynamics and cycles (such as hydrological dynamics, soil type, nutrient cycling, trophic chains, biological corridors, etc.) coexist and combine within the ecosystems that make up the biome, the complexity of possible solutions is accentuated.) within the ecosystems that make up this biome, the complexity of the possible environmental management strategies associated with the effects derived from processes such as the exploration and production of hydrocarbons is accentuated, which makes it necessary to understand the complex interrelationship between the elements referred to, as well as the recognition of the scenarios of effects and the formulation of hypotheses aimed at simulating them.

It follows from the above that the investigation of the history of a contaminated site (ergo, a disturbance), as well as the collection of data through characterization, are an integral part of the environmental assessment process. However, the question arises: How should we interpret and use this information?
To be able to understand, or even simulate, the environmental implications of potential disturbances to a natural environment – in the case of this article, to an Amazonian environment – requires a tool that allows conceptualizing and recreating the disturbance-environment interaction, which is known as a “conceptual model”.
A conceptual model[1] sensu stricto corresponds to a working hypothesis that simulates, describes or represents the source of the contaminant and its chemical nature, the probable interaction of this with the different environmental matrices affected, the biological, physical and chemical processes that modulate or determine the transport of the contaminant, as well as the exposure pathways of this to the potential receptors, within the environment – natural, industrial, urban or mixed, in which it is located.
As mentioned above, the ecosystems that make up the Amazon biome are closely related to the climatic, edaphological, geomorphological, biotic, etc., factors that take place in this biome. In conceptual models in an Amazonian environment, the hydrological dynamics is particularly important, as it behaves as the communicating vessel between the systems that make up the forest biome.
The development of a conceptual model of a contaminated area in an Amazonian environment requires an adequate understanding of the dynamics of the water factor (surface water, groundwater or precipitation) so that this model can be considered as a valid working hypothesis or a correct approximation of what may occur in this area.

For rainforest environments, watersheds are considered as the minimum unit of assessment for an impacted area or site when developing a conceptual model, under a spatial and geographic dimension consistent with the magnitude of the contaminated area and according to the scale of assessment.
Other relevant elements in the design of a conceptual model in an Amazonian environment are distinguished, such as soil type, geology, landform (which determines drainage patterns), the daily life and habits of the native communities, as well as the chemical nature of the pollutant. However, the “water” environmental matrix is recognized as the determining and predominant factor on the dynamics of pollutants in the environment, up to their potential final receptors (biotic or abiotic).

It is an iterative, dynamic tool, whose level of detail must be consistent with the complexity of the site and its environment, where the definition or testing of hypotheses described in the model is subject to the knowledge of the contamination scenario under evaluation. Accordingly, it is vital to focus efforts to achieve, in the most assertive way, an adequate, sufficient and representative collection of information in the field.
Thus, for the subject of this article, the special attention required to obtain sufficient information to develop the conceptual model in an Amazonian environment, based on the processes described above, is an unquestionable premise.
LITOCLEAN, a leading environmental consulting and remediation company in Peru, has vast experience in the evaluation of contaminated sites, as well as in the development of conceptual models in diverse environments ranging from the Amazon or jungle, to urban, commercial or industrial environments.
[1] E1689-95 (2008) Standard Guide for Developing Conceptual Site Models for Contaminated Sites