The AGRIPORT Project - Agricultural Reuse of Polluted Dredged Sediments

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1 The AGRIPORT Project - Agricultural Reuse of Polluted Dredged Sediments 20 th April Durres, Albania By Jelena Perunicic DFS Montenegro jelena.perunicic@dfs-engineering.com EU ECO INNOVATION PROGRAM The Eco-innovation initiative is managed by the Executive Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation (EACI) in close cooperation with the EC's General Environment Directorate. It forms part of the EU's Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP), aimed at encouraging the competitiveness of European companies. Launched in 2008, in the scope of the program Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (EIP). The three main aspects of CIP Eco-innovation are: Environmental benefits Economic benefits (including wide replication) Contribution of projects to innovation One of the funded techniques is the AGRIPORT technique (June June 2012)

2 THE AGRIPORT PROJECT The Agriport project promotes an innovative approach to decontaminate dredging sediments using plants (phyto-treatment) and earth worms, to adapt them to the terrestrial environment and to recycle them into arable land or for other similar uses. The objectives are: To develop the use of AGRIPORT phyto-remediation as an innovative technology to recover dredging sediments using plants (phyto-treatment) and earth worms. To promote the application of AGRIPORT phyto-remediation and to create a market for this innovative reconditioning system in Europe and in the Mediterranean Region. PROJECT PARTNERS SGI Studio Galli Ingegneria, a leading Italian water engineering consultancy University of Pisa, Department of Civil Engineering National Research Council, Institute for Ecosystem Studies, Pisa D Appolonia S.p.A. a leading Italian environmental engineering consultancy Volcani Center: the central campus of the Agricultural Research Organization of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of the State of Israel. Livorno Port Authority DFS Engineering d.o.o. an engineering company registered in Montenegro

3 The AGRIPORT idea The market demand for AGRIPORT technology is very wide: an annual estimated volume of contaminated sediments dredged in Europe of million tons per year (69 commercial ports and 465 tourist ports in Europe). A mean production of about 0,5-1 million m3/year in the lone Livorno Port of dredged material The practice of dumping the dredged sediments into the sea is mostly banned in the EU, due to sediment pollution. The large amount of dredged material and pollution required inexpensive decontamination process or technology. The AGRIPORT technology is tested, an innovative approach to decontaminate slightly polluted dredged sediments. PHYTO-TREATMENT TREATMENT PROCESSES CONTAMINATED SOIL TECHNO SOIL (LOW SALINITY) (HIGH SALINITY) COMMERCIAL PLANTS PELLETS IMMAGINE PELET WATER

4 PHYTO-TREATMENT TREATMENT PROCESSES Step 1. Decontamination of sediment Bio-physical conditioning (add 10-20% of soil/calcareus sand and a superficial layer of compost); Planting grass/shrub species; Adapt irrigation/drainage system to local condition Reduction of heavy metals and hydrocarbons Step 2. From sediment to techno-soil Adding earth worms Setting target quality criteria for agronomic soil Improvement of chemico-physical and biochemical parameters Monitoring the system and fine tuning POSSIBLE BYPRODUCTS REUTILIZATION TECHNO SOIL (LOW SALINITY) Greenhouses Landfill Quarries restoration of degraded land mines restoration of dunes COMMERCIAL PLANTS PELLETS nursery pellets garden

5 DEMONSTRATIVE INSTALLATIONS Three demonstrative sites have been set up in Italy and Israel to test the applicability of the technology in different climatic conditions and on different types of sediments with different type of plants. Livorno Facilities are filled with a sediment-soil mixture and have an irrigation, drainage as well as monitoring system set in place. Pisa PP air operated diaphragm pump Manhole for samples collection HDPE pipe 1 2 " PVC pipe with top closure and bottom sealed closure = 315 mm Kishon Reinforced LDPE-HDPE geomembrane thickness 0.45 mm 1V : 1H 2V : 1H Sediment : soil (3:1 v/v) Sand d 50 <2 mm Gravel 8<d 50<20 mm Gravel 30<d 50 <60 mm p.c. CROSS SECTION A - A (SCALE 1 : 50) PRELIMINARY COSTS-BENEFITS ANALYSIS The AGRIPORT technology allows to produce by-products that can be sold in the market. Traditional treatment Cost /m 3 X Revenue NULL Contaminated sediment Agriport treatment /m 3 (excluding land By-products ~15-70 /m 3 cost) The costs of traditional and AGRIPORT technologies varies according to many factors that have to be carefully evaluated.

6 20 CASE STUDIES for CBA Montenegro: n.4 cases Spain: n.2 cases Italy: n.10 cases Greece: n.1 case Israel: n.3 cases Israel: Hasdod port Haifa port Ministry of Environment Spain: Valencia port Montenegro: Bar port Montenegro port Kotor port Bjiela Adriatic Shipyard Italy: Livorno port Authority Navicelli SpA (Pisa) Venice port Authority Marciana Marina & Marina di Campo (Isola d Elba) Taranto, Brindisi, Bari, Barletta & Monopoli ports Some Limitation factors PROS reduction of transportation cost (no disposal in landfill but deposition nearby the canal) possibility of sediment treatment reutilization of the treated sediment effectiveness and inexpensiveness in treating slightly polluted sediments CONS Legislation and regulation Process dependent constraints - Long treatment cycle (at least 2 years) (in terms of required decontamination time) - Large land area required FOR TREATMENT -Water climate conditions Moreover, beyond the need for clearer regulatory guidance, the commercial exploitation of dredged material needs to take into account a structured and coordinated approach at local/regional level

7 THANK YOU