Contamination Sources in Kangerlussuaq, Greenland

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Sources in Kangerlussuaq, Greenland April 14 th, 2016 Msc. Student Steffen Davidsen, s103359@student.dtu.dk Msc.

1 Sources in Kangerlussuaq, Greenland April 14 th, 2016 Msc. Student Steffen Davidsen, Msc. Student Jonas Kjeld Kirstein, Associate Professor Pernille Erland Jensen,

2 About the project A 10 ECTS project at Arctic Technology Centre, DTU Preparation of field work (Spring 2015) 3 weeks of site investigations and data collection (August 2015) Article writing (Autumn 2015) 2

Sisimiut Kangerlussuaq Sediment samples: Cd 0.4 and Pb 50 mg/kg concentrations Cd 0.

3 Motivation of study Ruggiero & Villemoes (2005) 1 : The concentrations of lead and cadmium is significantly higher in the two samples closest to Kangerlussuaq, and lead was found above the Ecologically Acceptable Concentration (EAC). Sisimiut Kangerlussuaq Sediment samples: Cd 0.4 and Pb 50 mg/kg concentrations Cd 0.36 and Pb 6-37 mg/kg Cd 0 mg/kg Pb 0 mg/kg 1 Ruggiero, C. & Villemoes, L. (2005). Spildevandshåndtering og effekter på havmiljøet omkring Sisimiut. Lyngby, Denmark. 3

4 Hazards of heavy metals High sorption to organic materials (Cd, Pb, Ni, Cu etc.): Low mobility Accumulate in food chain Various toxic effects including 1, 2 : Nerve damage increased carcinogenic risk Damage to organs e.g. kidneys, lungs Psychological diseases (e.g. depression) Insomnia 1 Barakat, M. A. (2011). New trends in removing heavy metals from industrial wastewater. Arabian Journal of Chemistry, 4(4), Ray, P. Z., & Shipley, H. J. (2015). Inorganic nano-adsorbents for the removal of heavy metals and arsenic: a review. RSC Adv., 5(38),

Kangerlussuaq 1942-1992: American military airbase Up to 3500 people primarily from the US Air Force.

5 Kangerlussuaq : American military airbase Up to 3500 people primarily from the US Air Force present: Handed over to Greenland Greenland s largest commercial airport (130,000 passengers a year). Around 500 inhabitants. Photo of the Sonderstrom air base (now Kangerlussuaq) Based on its past, several contaminated sites around the settlement exist. 1 Photo by Don Wilkerson, around 1965, 5

Improper wastewater/chemical waste handling Current

6 Potential contamination Natural Kangerlussuaq settlement Previous activities: Deicing Old dump sites Accidents, e.g. spills, fire, leaks. Improper wastewater/chemical waste handling Current activities: Deicing Dump site Untreated wastewater 6

Deicing at Kangerlussuaq Airport No dedicated site for deicing before 2008.

7 Deicing at Kangerlussuaq Airport No dedicated site for deicing before Limited hangar space: Precautionary deicing large deicing volumes Deicing on all aprons No treatment of fluids and runoff from the airport area Deicing Volume Aircraft deicing Air blast Year [L] [No. of Occ.] [No. of Occ.] Air blast: Forced Air Aircraft Deicing System: Blast off light snow and ice with high pressure air 7

8 Deicing at Kangerlussuaq Airport Airport overview: Apron East Apron West 8

9 Pollutions at Kangerlussuaq Airport Accidents, spills and other stories: Poor documentation on spill volumes and locations Lost or unavailable material Local and former residents may be the best source of information Unprecise Difficult to verify 9

10 Introduction Pollutions at Kangerlussuaq Airport Airport overview: 1 Modified from Theil, T., Wium, M. & Bille-Hansen, J. (2003). Registrering af affaldsdepoter og forurende grunde i Grønland. 10

Several spills from leaching oil pipelines and tanks around the airport. Spray of oil to prevent mosquitos.

11 Pollutions at Kangerlussuaq Airport Accidents, spills and other stories: Multiple oil spills from the power plant. Prior to 1970 building sites were saturated with pesticides. Several spills from leaching oil pipelines and tanks around the airport. Spray of oil to prevent mosquitos. Workers forced to stop digging due to dizziness caused by evaporation of chemicals from the soil. Stock of PCB on unknown location for unknown reasons

12 Remediation in the Arctic Excavation with: Local deposition Local treatment Low heat production Biological processes rarely effective Simple solutions are preferred! Or alternatively: Electrochemical remediation 12

13 Take home messages Local pollution are common in arctic settlements. Further attention to the impact of contaminated sites is recommended. Especially during soil handling. Not all contaminations require immediate actions. Global pollutions are confirmed to affect the arctic environment, but local point are rarely considered in the same perspective. Low-tech remediation technologies are recommended where applicable. 13

14 Thank you for your attention

Permittees under Sector S are primarily engaged in the following types of activities:

Permittees under Sector S are primarily engaged in the following types of activities: S. Air Transportation 1. Authorized Stormwater Discharges The requirements in Sector S apply to stormwater discharges associated with industrial activity from air transportation facilities as identified