Summary and conclusions

Redegørelse om jordforurening 2006

This investigation is the annual report from the Contaminated Sites Council to the Minister for the Environment, presenting efforts and activities in the field of soil contamination.

Due to the municipal reform, responsibility for most of the work on soil contamination has been transferred from the counties to the new regions. Therefore it is now the regions, who give the yearly report to the Contaminated Sites Council.

This investigation has been influenced by the large challenges arising from the municipal reform. Time and resources have been used on the new organisation of the work on soil contamination. Furthermore the reform has demanded new data systems, while old systems have had to be closed down. Reporting data produced by the former counties has been a demanding task for the regions. Municipalities have been merged and have been allocated new work areas. Furthermore computer systems have been merged. Therefore the municipalities have also spent considerable resources on reporting data. A fewer number of municipalities have reported data to the regions than previous years.

Generally, in 2006 the counties have given high priority to threats towards ground water. As expected the counties have used fewer resources on remediation projects in 2006 compared to 2005. Together with clean-up and remediation, listing has been afforded high priority. As expected fewer resources have been spent on listing and resources spent on investigation are half of the level in 2005. Reports from the regions give the impression that the work with soil contamination has been focused.

Due to the municipal reform the regions have to make new strategies. This work has not yet been fully completed and 2007 is expected to offer many challenges and a need to put tasks under a tight priority. In 2007 many regions need to complete present activities and fulfil new work areas due to changes in the Contaminated Soil Act.

On 31 December 2006, a total of almost 24,000 sites had been listed/registered by the regional authorities. 1,812 sites were listed at knowledge level 2 (established soil contamination, referred to as V2 in the following). 11,574 were listed at knowledge level 1 (knowledge of activities that may have caused soil contamination, referred to as V1 in the following).

In 2006 the number of sites listed at V2 increased by 1,207 (Except Viborg county due to database error last year) and the number of V1 sites increased by 1,386 (Except Viborg county due to database error last year). A total of 804 sites were removed from the register in 2006.

A range of different sources has contributed to contamination of the sites. Petrol and service stations and other activities involving oil/petrol, together with dry-cleaning establishments, make up the largest groups of causes for listing at V2 in 2006.

Listing is still based primarily on point sources. Areas contaminated by diffuse sources are listed almost exclusively at V2, most often in connection with investigation of a point source. In 2006, 78 sites were listed because they were contaminated by diffuse sources. Investigations indicate that many old urban areas have been contaminated by diffuse sources.

About half of the sites listed at V2 are covered by the target areas under the Contaminated Soil Act. The distribution between listing of areas with housing etc. on the one hand, and areas listed because of the risk of contamination of drinking water interests on the other, is almost equal. 37% of the areas listed in 2006 were used for housing, children's institutions or public playgrounds, while 23% were located in areas with special drinking water interests, and 23% were located in areas with drinking water interests.

In 2006, 36 remediation projects financed by the counties were carried out. This means that the total number of remediations financed by regional authorities and local authorities is a bit below the level of 2005. There has not been any significant difference in the number of measures financed by the counties with regard to remediation in housing areas and children's institutions etc. compared to remediation for protecting groundwater.

In 2006 an amount of DKK 47 mill. was committed under the Land Depreciation Programme. Interest in the Programme was still strong in 2006, however it continues to be smaller compared to the years before. As at 31 December 2006, 485 applications for remediation projects were pending, corresponding to an amount of DKK 499.5 mill. By comparison, on 31 December 2005, 504 applications were pending, corresponding to an amount of DKK 514 mill.

The Contaminated Sites Council finds that the Land Depreciation Programme is not meeting its objectives. The number of applications pending is still very high and the estimated waiting time is about 25 years. The number of applicants was smaller in 2006 than in the previous years, and the total number of applicants has remained stable. In the longer term, the funding for the Programme should be extended, or the Programme should be revised fundamentally.

Because of the large number of applications pending, a loan guarantee scheme was established for a trial period in 2004. 15 house owners out of 372 have used the loan guarantee scheme. The Council recommends that this scheme be continued, because it finds that it is a good opportunity for house owners to accelerate action to clean up soil on their property. It is estimated that the scheme is used by house owners who are faced with an acute need to clean up their property. However, the scheme should be made more attractive so that more house owners want to use it.

It has not been possible to estimate the total amount of soil that was cleaned and stored in connection with remediation at registered properties or for the purpose of avoiding registration. Last year this amount was 671,000 tonnes. The amount of data reported for soil transport by private funds is much lower than previous years, probably because a fewer number of municipalities have reported data. It has not been possible to estimate the amount of delay in data and therefore it has not been possible to estimate the total amount of soil transported by private funds or determine the private expenditure on clean-up.

In parts of the country, especially Sealand, soil from construction projects, is transported over long distances to be deposited at a suitable site. The Contaminated Sites Council suggests that solutions on how to reduce long transportation times are worked on.

In 2006 the local authorities continued their theme reports on causes of closure of water abstraction wells. Only 9 well closures in 2006 were reported. It is expected that the actual figure may be higher as not all municipalities have reported data about wells. Primarily natural quality problems and technical aspects cause the closure of wells. There is a high level of uncertainty on data and conclusions.

The total number of remediations in 2006 is estimated at a minimum of 648. That is fewer than in the years before. Of these, 46 were financed by the public sector, including the Land Depreciation Programme. Furthermore, 176 were completed under the Danish Oil Industry's Association for Remediation of Retail Sites, 163 fell under the insurance scheme for oil tanks at houses, while 263 were voluntary remediations or remediations following improvement notices served on private individuals. The number of remediations financed by private funds is much lower than last year and the number has not been raised further in estimates. This is not due to lower activity in this area, but rather due to a lack of reporting.

Total expenditure on soil contamination is estimated at DKK 628.7 mill.

Total expenditure by the counties is DKK 318 mill. Financing by the counties, which reaches DKK 106 mill., is still significantly higher than the amount that was agreed with the government in 1996.

The Contaminated Sites Council finds that there still is a great need to exploit the potential for minimising the costs of remediation. There is still a substantial need to reserve funds for the Technology Programme for Soil and Groundwater Contamination.

In spring 2006 a committee on soil transports was established. The committee has started working on an amendment of the legislation with regard to handling soil and soil transports. The work has resulted in a guidance on classifying areas in urban zones where the soil is expected to be slightly contaminated and a statutory order on the notification of soil transport, which is to enter into force on 01 January 2008. In addition, a common scheme on notification of soil transport is being discussed as well as digital systems. Furthermore, new legislation on final soil depositing will be prepared including a simplification of recycling of slightly contaminated soil and guidance material for the municipalities.

International work focuses on the national implementation of the directive on environmental liability and the proposal for a directive for establishing a framework for the protection of soil.