ProjectsWater resources managementScreening of hazardous substances in the aquatic environment of Lithuania
Project duration: December 2005 - December 2006
As a new EU Member State Lithuania is put under a set of EU legal environmental obligations. Regarding water quality a big emphasis is given to pollution control of hazardous substances. The EU Dangerous Substances Directive (DSD, 76/464/EEC and daughter directives) and the Water Framework Directive (WFD, 2000/60/EC) are the main pieces of Community legislation imposing obligations in this respect. According to aforementioned directives, hazardous substances defined by those legal acts should be controlled by European wide quality standards. Moreover, Member states should aim at progressive reduction of pollution of the aquatic environment by hazardous substances and phasing out of hazardous priority substances emissions.
However existing information on discharge of hazardous substances to water environment in Lithuania is very limited. Therefore, more information is needed on actual concentrations in main pollution sources effluents to fulfill the legal requirements.
The objective of the project is to obtain measurement data on concentrations of WFD priority substances and some other pollutants in waste water, sewage sludge and the receiving environment.
The project is focused on industrial and consumer chemicals; agricultural pesticides are not included in the survey.
The project is focused on industrial and consumer chemicals; agricultural pesticides are not included in the survey.
The project is supported by Finnish Ministry of Environment. The main parties involved into project implementation are Lithuanian Environmental Protection Agency, Finnish Environment Institute and subcontracted local consultants: Baltic Environmental Forum and Center for Environmental Policy.
The main project activities and results:
- Review of existing data on environmental monitoring of hazardous substances (years 1999-2004)
- Sampling and analysis of samples in the EPA and foreign laboratories for hazardous substances
- Study visit of EPA experts to SYKE laboratory to get familiar with analytical methods, assessment of possibilities to develop a new method.
- Publication of the project results in English and Lithuanian.
Sampling concentrates on discharges from largest urban wastewater treatment plants and selected sampling points on transboundary rivers. All together the project preliminary covers 40 sites, where 10 hazardous substances groups are analyzed (metals, nonilphenols, organotin compounds, brominated flame retardants, phtalates, chlorinated parafins, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds, organic chlorinated pesticides, also pentachlorphenol, in some places chlorpirifos) and ecotoxicity tests will be performed.
