Risk Assessment of mining waste facilities in the light of the European Mining Waste Directive 2006/21/EC

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1 Risk Assessment of mining waste facilities in the light of the European Mining Waste Directive 2006/21/EC Joerg Frauenstein Federal Environment Agency (UBA) Dessau-Rosslau, Germany

2 Acknowledgement: The main input for the presentation was carried out within the Twinning Project BG/07/EN/04 (Mining Waste) funded by the European Commission. Photograph Credits: Ansgar Wehinger Disclaimer: The contents do not necessarily reflect the opinion or the position of the European Commission (EC). The EC is not responsible and accepts no responsibility for the content and for any use that might be made of data appearing from this presentation.

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4 Main Instruments of Directive 2006/21/EC Permit Waste management plan Financial guarantee Inventory of closed high-risk facilities Major accident prevention policy Closure and after closure procedures

5 Recommendations for a Risk Based Inventory of closed / abandoned waste facilities Scope of Article 20 Directive 2006/21/EC cause serious negative environmental impacts or have the potential of becoming in the medium or short term a serious threat to human health or the environment. What is serious? No definition of serious, but same wording as the Definition of major accident. Assumption: serious, if impact or potential of impact has a dimension to the degree in case of a major accident

6 Risk Criteria - References within EC documents Criteria for the physical stability for tailing ponds regarding art /337/EC Criteria for the physical stability for heaps/dumps regarding art /337/EC Criteria (dangerous substances) for major accidents regarding Seveso II directive 96/82/EC Criteria for substance related risks: applicable European/National law for relevant environmental media Single case related risk assessment: serious risk? yes Inventory Appropriate measures no risk non-serious risks Periodically control documentation

7 Criteria for risk based asessment to establish the inventory of abandonend/closed mining waste facilties art. 20 of the directive for abandonend/closed mining waste facilities shall be included in the inventory if the actual status leads to serious negative environmental impacts and relevant threats to human health. The risk assessment should be carried out taking into account annex III first intent of directive ( 2006/21/EC) Non negligible potential for loss of life; Serious danger to human health; Serious danger to the environment and Commission decision 2009/337/EC, especially regarding the source-pathway-receptor chain and the following criteria set out in art.5+6. The risk based assessment for the inventory should include also the substance related components.

8 Risk Assessment of hazardous substances within a functional chain Harmful soil changes / contamination relevant p a t h w a y s Subject of protection/ receptor allowed use

9 What should be assessed? Potential risk or danger with regard to Human being (health) Environment (water, soil, etc.) Physical stability Type of waste

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11 Inert Waste criteria significant disintegration, dissolution or change to cause health or environment; maximum content of sulphide sulphur of 0,1 %, or maximum content of sulphide sulphur of 1 % and the neutralising potential ratio is greater than 3; (defined as the ratio between the neutralising potential and the acid potential, and determined on the basis of a static test pren 15875) No risk of self combustion and ability to burn; Content of substances potentially harmful to the environment or human health, and in particular As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mo, Ni, Pb, V and Zn, shall not exceed national threshold values or relevant national natural background levels Waste is substantially free of products used in extraction or processing that could harm.

12 Risk criteria An assessment of the release of contaminants (short-term and long-term). For the operational period and the long-term period following closure. It shall include an evaluation of the potential hazards constituted by facilities containing reactive waste. Injuries leading to disability or prolonged states of ill-health shall count as serious dangers to human health. Environmental risks are serious, if the intensity of the potential contaminant source strength is not decreasing significantly within a short time; the failure lead to permanent or long-lasting environmental damage; the affected environment cannot be restored through minor clean-up and restoration efforts.

13 Risk criteria (2) Assessing the potential for loss of life or danger to human health or to the environment with regard to the sourcepathway-receptor chain. the quantity and quality including physical and chemical properties of the waste in the facility any relevant, site-specific factors that may influence the potential for loss- of- life or for danger to human health. Where the threshold* exceeds 50 %, the facility shall be classified as Category A. Where the ratio between 5 % and 50 %, the facility shall be classified as Category A, exemptions possible *ratio of the weight on a dry matter basis of: (a) all waste classified as hazardous in accordance with Directive 91/689/EEC and expected to be present in the facility at the end of the planned period of operation, and (b) waste expected to be present in the facility at the end of the planned period of operation

14 Waste characterisation (a) background information; (b) geological background of deposit to be exploited; (c) nature of the waste and its intended handling; (d) geotechnical behaviour of the waste; (e) geochemical characteristics and behaviour of the waste.

15 Information and data necessary for the waste characterisation - in the order to 2009/360/EC Existing investigations and studies, including existing permits, geological surveys, similar sites, lists of inert waste, appropriate certification schemes, European or national standards for similar material; quality and representativity of all information shall be evaluated and possible missing information shall be identified; Where information necessary for waste characterisation is missing - a sampling plan shall be drawn up in accordance with standard EN The results of the characterisation process shall be evaluated. The final result shall feed into the waste management plan.

16 Criteria for estimation Dimension, characteristics of the facility Geometric dimensions of a heap Increase of groundwater within the heap Stability of bedrock Topography Deprivation of physical stability high mortal danger respectively grave danger for human health Does not apply for employees!

17 Criteria for estimation (2) Collapse of a dam: mud flow is thicker than 0,7 m and faster than 0,5 m/s Human being is threatened? Tailings / sedimentation ponds Identification of quantity of every ingredients coming from chemical treatment Identification of hazardous substances including aqueous phase (67/548 EEC und 199/45/EC) Calculation of water intake

18 Guiding principle of proportionality The actions of the administration has to be: suitable ( must reach the purpose); required ( no less restrictive, equally suitable means); adequate ( no mismatch between means and end). 08 / 07 / 2011

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20 Practical Approach designation of areas with adapted regulation Example Bodenschutzgebiet Goslar, traditional mining region (middle ages) Increased brackground values for lead, arsenic, cadmium etc. Designation of the area by: Fixing the extent of the area; Purpose of the designation; Necessary actions to achieve the purpose.

21 How to deal with increased background values? As long as increased values are geogen only, usually no remedial actions are necessary; In case of anthropogenic impact a single case related decision seems to be indicated; Modification within the legal soil protection framework (in Germany on the Laender level) Designation of affected areas in case of: Extensive (in terms of area) harmful soil changes, Extensive exceedance of precautionary soil values or Small scale protection of soils (in terms of types and quality) Suitable concepts for administrative execution

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23 Designation of special areas - Consequences Prohibition of any soil use Limited use of soils Capping of affected soils Planting of soils Prohibited application of special substances and materials (e.g. fertilizer) (Soil) investigation at regular intervals Acceptance of measures to avoid the arise of harmful soil changes Realization of measures to avoid the arise of harmful soil changes

24 Conclusion: Appropriate regulatory framework: improvement of data basis, values and regulation Practical and robust system with precise risk assessment and reasonable remediation measures: case-by-case decision about remediation action; proportionality of measures (suitable, required and adequate); applied regional approaches.

25 Thank You, any Questions? Joerg Frauenstein Umweltbundesamt Dessau-Rosslau Wörlitzer Platz 1 D Dessau joerg.frauenstein@uba.de