........ published in NEWSLETTER # 55
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........ published in NEWSLETTER # 55
APPROACHES FOR REMEDIATION OF CONTAMINATED FORMER SOVIET MILITARY INSTALLATIONS IN CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE
by Dr. R.C. Herndon, Florida State University, Tallahassee/FL (U.S.A.)
An Advanced Research Workshop related to the clean-up of former Soviet military installation sites was conducted in June 1994 in Visegrad, Hungary. During this workshop, a strategy and set of recommendations were developed for selecting technologies and evaluating remediation approaches for these sites. This strategy incorpoated such critical issues as the economic and financial conditions of the region, temporal considerations with regard to the urgency for which remedial actions are needed for these sites, the prioritization of resource allocations for site clean-up using risk-based considerations, and other crucial issues which will affect the implementation of remedial activities in the region. Approximately 40 invited experts, representing a number of different disciplines as well as both NATO and Cooperation Partner Countries from the region, participated in this workshop.
This workshop included a technical site visit to the Komarom Base Site which is a former Soviet military installation in Hungary. The types of former Soviet military installations in Central and Eastern Europe include: aircraft bases, fueling facilities, maintenance and repair facilities, training grounds, non- ammunition storage areas (for lubricants, chemicals, paints, equipment), ammunition storage areas, medical facilities, production facilities, and municipal facilities. Environmental contamination at these sites poses significant human health and environmental risks. Site contaminants include: solvents (e.g., BTEX), mineral oil hydrocarbons, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), chlorinated hydrocarbons, heavy metals, pesticides residues, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The primary environmental media adversely affected by these comtaminants are soils, ground water and surface water.
The principal objective of this workshop was to evaluate approaches for remediating the contamination problems at these sites in Central and Eastern Europe by convening a group of international experts on site remediation and related disciplines. The workshop results (NATO ASI SERIES 2-1) also have direct application to other (non-former Soviet military installations) sites in the region with similar contamination problems. A key recommendation made by the workshop participants relates to the need to establish a technology demonstration site in the region. The purpose of this demonstration site would be to provide first- hand knowledge and experience in the actual application and effectiveness of remediation technologies. The demonstration site could also provide training for both agency personnel and private sector personnal involved with contaminated site remediation activities in the region.
Reference books: 2-1