Soil Protection

Global

Soils:

The

Netherlands

Developments in Soil Protection in The Netherlands

Ton Breure and Willie Peijnenburg* RIVM, Laboratory for Ecological Risk assessment p.o. Box 1 3720 BA Bithoven, The Netherlands * Corresponding author (WJGM.Peijnenburg@rivmml)

The Dutch Soil Protection Act came into force on January 1, 1987 (VROM 1986)o According to the Act, soil is "The solid part of the earth including liquid and gaseous compounds and organisms therein." The act states that it aimed at "...prevention, reduction or undoing of changes in the quality of the soil that imply a reduction or threat to the functional properties that soil has for man, plant and animal." Chapter 3 of the Act gives provisions on activities that have to be done or are prohibited in the interest of soil protection. The specific descriptions of the provisions are given in 'Orders in Council'. Orders are produced so as:
to regulate activities where substances are brought on or in the soil that might contaminate or affect the soil (e.g. waste materials, waste sludge, ashes, manure); to bring constructions in or onto the soil that might affect or contaminate the soil (e.g. foundation of buildings, underground storage tanks, service pipes); to take into consideration the activities that affect or contaminate the soil (e.g. excavation of soil, extraction of groundwater, use of service pipes for the transportation of potential pollutants); to determine environmental quality standards for concentrations of toxic organic compounds and heavy metals.

standard setting. The Ecotoxicotogical Serious Risk Concentration, the concentration where the soil is seriously contaminated, is at the 50th percentile of the SSD curve. Intervention Values and Target Values for more than 125 compounds and compound groups have been summarised, including analytical methods to determine these values (VROM 2000). A good overview of the quality criteria and the way to derive them is given in Swartjes (1999).
Recent Developments in The Netherlands

Recently (14-10-2002), an addendum to the Soil Protection Act became effective (VROM 2002a,b,c). This addendum, called 'Location Specific Considerations', states: If the costs of the remediation, compared to the effects of it, do not justify that remediation is being performed in a way that all functional properties of the soil for man, plant or animal are maintained or recovered, it is accepted to take the measures to isolate and manage the contamination, and to control the effects of the isolation and management measures. If the contamination disperses or threatens to disperse, it must be removed as much as possible. As far as the pollutant is not immediately removed, this should be done within the shortest period possible, but at least within one generation. If the pollutant does not disperse nor threaten to disperse, then the soil can be made usable for the proposed aim. A methodology to assess whether this adaptation of the Soil Sanitation Act can be used is being developed. The approach in the Netherlands for site-specific ecological risk assessment of soil contamination is based on the estimation of effects from the presence of contaminants in soil, and HCs0 values. However, legal authorities are qualified to use additional methods when the application of the current approach does not provide a clear result. Trends in assessment methods are directed towards the application of biological tests, like bioassays and biological field observations. For implementation of this framework, the so-called TRIAD approach was adopted. The TRIAD is composed of three elements: an assessment of risks from the presence of contaminants in the soil and in biota (substances directed approach), an assessment of risks from the results of bioassays with samples from the site, and biological field observations.

In The Netherlands data on human and ecotoxicological risks are determined and compared separately, and the most stringent value of the two is used in a standard setting for serious soil contamination. The human risks are assessed using the exposure model 'C-soil'. C-soil includes all relevant exposure pathways, e.g. soil ingestion, crop consumption from kitchen gardens, inhalation of volatilised soil contaminants, consumption of groundwater or dermal contact with contaminated soil (Swartjes 1999). Ecotoxicological standards are based on Species Sensitivity Distributions (SSDs) when a sufficient number of toxicity data exists. This methodology has been described extensively by Posthuma et al. (2002). The derivation of standards is based on the proposition that a logistic distribution of Iog(NOEC) data is satisfactory for the calculation of the SSD. Historically, the 5th percentile of the distribution has been chosen as the cut-off point, defining the so-called HC s (Hazardous Concentration that is equal to or higher than the NOEC for 5 % of the exposed species in laboratory tests). This value is called the MTR (Maximal Tolerable Risk level), which is subsequently used to derive the Target Value in

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Global Soils: The Netherlands

Soil Protection

From field investigations at contaminated sites, the conclusion was that the quantitative Triad approach is useful to integrate different ecological risk assessment methods (Chapman 1985, Rutgers et at. 2000). At present the quality standards for immobile contaminants of the soil that have to be met in The Netherlands for different types of land-use are being described in land-use specific clean-up objectives. Four groups of land-use were distinguished: Residential and intensively used green areas, extensively used green areas, built-up and paved areas and agricultural and nature areas~ For each group of land-use, requirements are formulated and soil quality criteria are selected that meet the requirements as adequately as possible. These objectives are based on human-toxicological criteria, general ecotoxicotogical criteria (for soil processes, below-ground organisms, and plants) and quality criteria for other requirements, like agricultural functions (Lijzen et aL 1999, 2002). Aiming at a sustainable use of the soil, research is also focussed on the integrated estimation of combined effects of different stresses, such as desiccation, acidification, eutrophication and pollution with toxic compounds. Within the research, field data are collected in a national biotic and abiotic monitoring programme. The approach yields insight in the optimal investments toward risk reduction of environmental stress on a national or regional level. Reliable assessment of ecological effects of pollutants in multi-stress field situations has to be provided by tools that can further be used to validate environmental quality criteria and to assess the ecological quality of soil (e.g. Mulder et al. 2003).

References

Chapman PM (1985): Sediment quality criteria from the sediment quality triad: An example. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 5, 957-964 Lijzen JPA, Swartjes FA, Otte P, Witlems WJ (1999}: BodemGebruiksWaarden. Methodiek en Uitwerking RIVM report 711701 016, 41 pp. Lijzen JPA, Mesman M, Atdenberg., Mutder Ch, Otte PF, Posthumus R, Roex E, Swartjes FA, Versluijs CW, Van Vlaardingen P, Van Weze, AP, Van Wijnen HJ (2002): Evatuatie onderbouwing BodemGebmiksWaarden. RIVM report 711701 029, 171 pp. Mulder Ch, Zwart D de, Wijne, HJ van, Schouten AJ, Breure AM {2003): Observational and simulated evidence of ecological shifts within the soil nematode community of agroecosystems under conventional and organic farming. Functional Ecology 17, 516-525 Posthuma L, Suter II GW, Traas TP (Eds.) (2001): Species sensitivity distributions in ecotoxicology. CRC/Lewis Pubishers, Boca Raton Rutgers M, Faber JH, Postma JF, Eijsackers H (2000): Site-specific ecological risks: A basic approach to the function-specific assessment of soil pollution. Reports of the Programme on Integrated Soil Research. Vol. 28, Programme Bureau Soil Research, Wageningen Swartjes FA (1999): Risk-based assessment of soil and groundwater quality in the Netherlands: Standards and remediation urgency. Risk Analysis 19, 1235-1249 VROM (The Netherlands Ministry of Housing, Physical Planning and the Environment) (1986): Wet Bodembescherming. Staatsblad van her Koninkrijk der Nederlanden 3-7-1986 nr 374 VROM (2000): Target values and intervention values soil sanitation. Circular DB011999226863, 4-2-2000 VROM (2002a): Besluit Locatiespecifieke Omstandigheden. Staatsblad van her Koninkrijk der Nederlanden 23-4-2002 rtr 192 VROM (2002b): Regeling Locatiespeciefieke Omstandigheden. Staatscourant 10-10-2002 nr 195 V R O M (2002c): Rectificatie Regeiing Locatiespeciefieke Omstandigheden. Staatscourant 4-12-2002 nr 234

About Dr. Ir. Willie Peijnenburg, RIVM, Laboratory for Ecological Risk Assessment, P.O. Box 1,3720 BA Bilthoven, The Netherlands

Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering 1988. Thesis Title: An Experimental and Quantumchemical Study on the Mechanism and Stereochemistry of Photochemical [I ,3] Sigmatropic Shifts. The Ph.D. study was directed on the various factors that control the mechanism and the stereochemistry of photochemical [1,3] OH shifts in some newly developed model systems. 1988 to present: National Institute of Public Health and Environmental Protection; Laboratory for Ecotoxicology, Bilthoven, The Netherlands.
Current Research Interests:

1) mpementatin f biaaiabiity f heaVy metas in dsk assessment prcedures The aim f this research is t deVep methdgies fr assessing soil specific heavy metal standards. Models are developed and validated that combine chemical insights in the area of metal speciation, with biological insights regarding uptake of metals as influenced by both soil-specific and organism-specific factors. 2) The development and application of quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSARs) for the estimation of both physical-chemical properties and transformation rates of chemical substances in the environment, with the aim of using these QSARs in models for ecological risk assessment. 3) Study of biotic and abiotic transformation processes of chemical substances in natural ecosystems: development of methods for extrapolating data obtained in laboratory settings to realistic field conditions.
Additional:

1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6)

Editor-in-Chief of JSS - Journal of Soils and Sediments Editor of Environmental Chemistry of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry Editor of Environmental Pollution and of Environmental Sciences Editor of the Bulletin Chemical Society Ethiopia In two years from now Secretary of the IUPAC Division on Chemistry and the Environment Member of the board of the Section on Environmental Chemistry of the Dutch Royal Chemical Society

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