Page History

Tarnowskie Góry (near Katowice), a large-scale industrial area, was closed down in 
  1995 and had to be redeveloped. The 
  chemical plant had been operating since 1921. Approximately l.7 mln tons of 
  hazardous waste containing Ba, B, Zn, Cu and Sr have been dumped on the area 
  of 0.3 km2. The chemical plant is located in the Silesia Province 
  (the most urbanized and industrialized area of Poland). Within the chemical 
  plant area and surroundings, 9 dumping sites were found, which cover the total 
  area of 34 ha. The amounts of waste and sewage sludge dumped without any protection 
  is estimated at 1.7 million tons. The site and its surroundings are considered 
  as a megasite. The stepwise approach of the IMS leads to preferred megasite 
  scenario. The final decision will depend on the access to funds, the elimination 
  of knowledge and technological gaps and the stabilization of environmental regulations.
<br><br>
The deliverables of the case-study of Tarnowskie Góry can be downloaded under Workpackage 4 in the 'About' part of the IMS: <i>
<a href="../about/index48d8.html?index=10">About->Deliverables</a></i>.

<span class="midtitle">Organizing stakeholders<br /><br /></span>
 <strong>Stakeholder organization structure for Tarnowskie Góry (TG) megasite</strong><br /><br />
The identification of stakeholders was carried out by:
<ul type="disc">
<li>screening existing organizations,</li>
<li>direct contacts with organizations active in the area,</li>
<li>using the experience and knowledge of local communities and administrative authorities.</li>
</ul>
The selection of stakeholders was based on:
<ul type="disc">
<li>problem definition and developed conceptual model of the potential risks of the megasite with identification of potential groups of interests,</li>
<li>boundary conditions, including legal and economical aspects.</li>
</ul>
For Tarnowskie Góry megasite, the following stakeholders were invited  to the group of stakeholders (GOS) to participate in the process (see picture below):
<ul type="disc">
<li>owners of wells,</li>
<li>local  authorities,</li>
<li>branches of national and regional governments,</li>
<li>public financing institutions.</li>
</ul>

These groups of stakeholders play different roles and represent different aspects of the megasite management. Stakeholder characteristics are presented in the following table.<br /><br />
<table width="100%" align="center" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4">
<tr height="30" bgcolor="#9F7694">
<td width="25%" align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF">Stakeholder</font></td>
<td width="25%" align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF">Role</font></td>
<td width="25%" align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF">Interest</font></td>
<td width="25%" align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF">Aspect</font></td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Owners of wells</td>
<td>Representative of particular interests</td>
<td>Economical</td>
<td>Decrease of water quality, Higher costs of water purification, Closing up water-intakes</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Local governments: the County Office in Tarnowskie Góry, the Municipality of Tarnowskie Góry</td>
<td>Representative of the inhabitants<br>Guardian of the local development</td>
<td>Social & environmental</td>
<td>Human risk<br> Environmental limitations and chances for (re)development</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The liquidator of the chemical plant in Tarnowskie Góry</td>
<td>Representative of National liabilities</td>
<td>Economical liability</td>
<td>Risk reduction costs</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The Ministry of Environment</td>
<td>Regulator</td>
<td>Statutory obligations</td>
<td>Environmental quality, health risk</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The Inspectorate of Environmental Protection in Katowice & the Sanitary Inspectorate in Katowice</td>
<td>Law execution</td>
<td>Statutory obligations</td>
<td>Environmental quality, health risk</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The Regional Water Management Boards in Wroclaw & Gliwice</td>
<td>Law execution</td>
<td>Statutory obligations</td>
<td>Groundwater quality and quantity</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Public financial institutions: the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management, the Voiewodship Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management in Katowice</td>
<td>Public funds management</td>
<td>Statutory obligations</td>
<td>Improvement of environmental quality,
Particularly soil and groundwater,
Redevelopment and revitalization of the area
</td>
</tr>
</table><br />
<strong>Stakeholders for Tarnowskie Góry megasite</strong><br /><br />
The interrelations among the stakeholders that form the GOS for the Tarnowskie Góry megasite are presented in figure below.

The functions dedicated to the members of the GOS are summarized in table below.<br/><br/>
<table width="100%" align="center" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4">
<tr height="30" bgcolor="#9F7694">
<td width="26%" align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF">Stakeholder type</font></td>
<td width="37%" align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF">Organisation</font></td>
<td width="37%" align="center"><font color="#FFFFFF">Function</font></td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td rowspan="3">Problem owner</td>
<td>The liquidator of the chemical plant</td>
<td>Problem owner of the contaminated megasite</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The County Office Tarnowskie Góry</td>
<td>Problem owner of local contaminations within the risk management zone/clusters. Problem owner of the redevelopment of the industrial area.
</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Municipality of Tarnowskie Góry</td>
<td>Problem owner of local contamination within the risk management zone (residential areas)</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td rowspan="7">Responsible authorities</td>
<td>The Ministry of Environment</td>
<td>Supreme Environmental Agency (at the same time regulatory authority)</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The Regional Board of Water Management Gliwice<br><br>The Regional Board of Water Management Wroclaw</td>
<td>Supervision and permission watershed authorities, superior authorities for emission (discharge) control.</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The County Office Tarnowskie Góry</td>
<td>Local authority for safety and order (at the same time representative of the local public)</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The Municipality of Tarnowskie Góry</td>
<td>Local authority for safety and order (at the same time representative of the local public).</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The Silesian Voivodship Office (Dept. of Environmental Protection)</td>
<td>Responsible authority for soil & groundwater management</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The Inspectorate of Environmental Protection in Katowice</td>
<td>Technical authority on behalf of the Ministry of Environment.</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The Sanitary Inspectorate in Katowice</td>
<td>Technical authority on behalf of the Ministry of Health</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td rowspan="4">Financiers</td>
<td>The Ministry of Environment</td>
<td>Provider of funds for exceptional cases of environmental deterioration</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The National Fund for Environmental Protection & Water Management</td>
<td>Financial support of environmental projects.</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The Voivodship Fund for Environmental Protection & Water Management</td>
<td>Financial support of environmental projects at regional level (on behalf of the voivodship authority).</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>The County and Municipal Funds for Environmental Protection & Water Management in Tarnowskie Góry</td>
<td>Financing support of environmental projects at local level (on behalf of  local governments).</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Local Public</td>
<td>The Municipality of Tarnowskie Góry The County Office in Tarnowskie Góry</td>
<td>Represented by the municipalities - no public organizations present</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left"">
<td>Project manager</td>
<td>The liquidator of the chemical plant</td>
<td>Responsible developer of the regional remediation concept (Master plan), data & information transfer</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Consultants</td>
<td>Diverse private companies for special tasks</td>
<td>Responsible for technical aspects: design, implementation of mitigative measures, monitoring</td>
</tr>
</table><br /><br />

At present, the redevelopment of Tarnowskie Góry megasite has got low priority due to the low economical profile of the region. It can be expected that in future it may become an issue. This kind of interests is represented within the GOS by the local governments.<br /><br />
The stakeholders were asked to make formal commitments concerning their participation in the process of decision-making. Their involvement was carried out according to the input-output model that is presented in table below.<br/><br/>
<table width="100%" align="center" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5">
<tr height="30" bgcolor="#9F7694" align="center">
<td colspan="2"><font color="#FFFFFF">INPUT</font></td>
<td><font color="#FFFFFF">PROCESS</font></td>
<td colspan="2"><font color="#FFFFFF">OUTPUT</font></td>
</tr>
<tr align="center">
<td width="21%">Provider of information</td>
<td width="21%">Type of information</td>
<td width="16%" bgcolor="#F2EDF1">Phase of dialogue</td>
<td width="21%">Stakeholder</td>
<td width="21%">Information from stakeholders</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Megasite manager</td>
<td>Database<br>Scientific & technical methods<br>Conceptual model<br>Integrated information<br>Non-technical synthesis</td>
<td align="center" bgcolor="#F2EDF1">1<sup>st</sup> meeting<br /><br />Description of problem</td>
<td>Owner/user of wells<br>Landowner/ Enterprises<br>Local authorities<br>Environmental & sanitary inspections<br>National & regional government</td>
<td>Boundary conditions</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Megasite manager</td>
<td>Management & law<br>Integrated information<br>Non-technical synthesis</td>
<td align="center" bgcolor="#F2EDF1">2<sup>nd</sup> meeting<br /><br />Description of management possibility</td>
<td>Owner/user of wells<br>Landowner/ Enterprises<br>Local authorities<br>Environmental & sanitary inspections<br>National & regional government</td>
<td>Decision for IMS approach</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Megasite manager<br>Hydrogeologist<br>Modelling specialist<br>Risk assessment specialist</td>
<td>Scientific and technical methods<br>Risk assessment<br>Integrated information<br>Non-technical synthesis</td>
<td align="center" bgcolor="#F2EDF1">3<sup>rd</sup> meeting<br /><br />Description of risk & Risk Management Zone (RMZ)</td>
<td>Owner/user of wells<br>Landowner/ Enterprises<br>Local authorities<br>Environmental & sanitary inspections<br>National & regional government</td>
<td>Acceptable level of risk<br>Delineate of RMZ</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Megasite manager<br>Facilitator</td>
<td>Risk, time and cost assessment<br>Integrated information<br>Non-technical synthesis</td>
<td align="center" bgcolor="#F2EDF1">4<sup>th</sup> meeting<br /><br />Description of management scenarios</td>
<td>Owner/user of wells<br>Landowner/ Enterprises<br>Local authorities<br>Environmental & sanitary inspections<br>National & regional government</td>
<td>Selection of management scenario</td>
</tr>
<tr align="left">
<td>Megasite manager</td>
<td>Technical integrated information<br>Non-technical synthesis</td>
<td align="center" bgcolor="#F2EDF1">5<sup>th</sup> meeting<br /><br />Description of monitoring & megasite management</td>
<td>Local authorities<br>Environmental & sanitary inspections<br>National & regional authorities</td>
<td>Improvement of actions & management</td>
</tr>
</table>

<span class="midtitle">Boundary conditions<br /><br /></span>
 <strong>Social factors and public interest</strong><br/><br/>
The public interest in the case of Tarnowskie Góry megasite is mostly oriented to groundwater resources. The megasite redevelopment is also important but the benefits are indirect, and analyzed on a broader scale from the perspective of the County and Municipality of Tarnowskie Góry.
<ol>
<li><i>Employment</i><br/>
Currently, the redevelopment of the megasite provides employment only within the construction works carried out. The megasite area is located in a district potentially attractive for development as a whole. However, the area of the former chemical plant is less attractive because, according to the revitalization plans, most of it is being used for the construction of the landfill.<br/><br/></li>
<li><i>Increase of neighbouring property values</i></br/>
The revitalization of the megasite can have a positive impact on the neighbourhood. The former chemical plant is localized in a mixed industrial/residential district. Furthermore, it borders an important railway depot and a communication centre. It also includes the area that was previously used for military training, as well as a low-grade forest area. Having in mind changes in the industry and communication - lower demands for rail services - the whole area may become attractive for diverse industrial developments.<br/><br/></li>
<li><i>Increased tax revenues</i><br/>
No immediate tax revenues increase is possible because the direct impact of the megasite revitalization is rather low. Potential effects depend on the development of the whole district, in which the megasite revitalization is a key element. The contamination sources removal and groundwater management prevent an increase of the social costs whereas further degradation of groundwater resources would raise them.<br/><br/></li>
<li><i>Infrastructure</i><br/>
The redevelopment of the megasite does not change or facilitate the infrastructure in the area. The redevelopment of the district as a whole will need improvement of the infrastructure, including local road connections to the main road net.<br/><br/></li>
<li><i>Environmental factors</i><br/>
The environmental factors at the megasite comprise various media and exposure pathways, but only some of them are of primary importance. Soil contamination is characterized by elevated levels of metals and none-metal contents within the megasite and in its close vicinity. Similarly, surface waters are contaminated in close vicinity of the megasite. There is no important impact on ecological values and people living in the area. Contamination of groundwater is the priority problem in a long-time perspective. The Triassic groundwater basins (Lubliniec-Myszków and Gliwice) are very important at local, regional and national levels. These large water reservoirs are of concern as sources of drinking water for the population of about 1 million. The total endangered area of these aquifers reaches 20 km<sup>2</sup>, whereas the area of high impacts due to contamination is estimated at 5 km<sup>2</sup>. 
<br/><br/></li>
<li><i>Financial resources and costs</i><br/>
Possible public financing is determined basically by the budgets of public stakeholders involved in the megasite management. The public financial resources on the local level are insufficient to cover all expenses. The town and county budgets have together reserves at the level of 0.5 million euro per year. The same amounts can be spent from the regional sources. An additional financial input can be connected with the other institutions, e.g. the national and regional funds for environmental protection (their statutory obligation is to support monitoring activities), as well as possibility to get funds according to envisioned contaminated land national plan, and funds from the EU structural funds. Financial participation of private local and regional enterprises, including water suppliers, should also be involved.<br/>   
The estimated costs of managing the Tarnowskie Góry megasite depend on the management scenario to be applied, and are determined by two crucial activities:
<ul>
<li>the removal of hazardous waste,</li>
<li>the cleanup of groundwater.</li>
</ul>
The total costs of soil remediation is estimated at the level of 60 million Euro, including the costs of the industrial construction dismantling and hazardous waste removal, utilization and landfilling.<br/>
The costs of cleanup of the Triassic aquifers depend highly on the scenario. For the most restrictive one may even reach 100 millions Euro.<br/><br/></li>
</ol>
The losses-benefits analysis of performing the megasite redevelopment is summarized in table below.<br/><br/>
<table align="center" width="100%" border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2">
<tr height="40" align="center" bgcolor="#F4EBEA">
<td width="40%"><b>Expected benefits<br><br>Expected losses</b></td>
<td width="30%"><b>Carrying <br>redevelopment</b></td>
<td width="30%"><b>Doing nothing</b></td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" align="center">
<td>Impact on neighbouring property values</td>
<td>Generate development possibilities in the area
</td>
<td>Further economical & social deterioration of the district</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" align="center">
<td>Employment</td>
<td>Positive indirect impact</td>
<td>Lost opportunities</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" align="center">
<td>Stabilization in the tax revenues</td>
<td>Positive indirect impact</td>
<td>Increase of the social costs</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" align="center">
<td>Infrastructure</td>
<td>No direct effects, redevelopment require supplementary investments</td>
<td>No effects</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" align="center">
<td>Environment and health</td>
<td>Improvement</td>
<td>Increased local hazards</td>
</tr>
</table>

 <span class="midtitle">Inventory of information<br /><br /></span>
 <strong>Inventory of information</strong><br/><br/>

The geo-spatial database for the Tarnowskie Góry megasite was developed using the following sources of data:
<ul>
<li>The GIS of the Tarnowskie Góry area (land use physical plan and maps of: land use status, soils, old mining activities, geology, river network).</li>
<li>The Marshal Geodesy Office (raster topographic and vector sozological maps, administrative boundaries).</li>
<li>The Central Geological Archives (boreholes logs, geological/hydrogeological documentations, geological maps).</li>
<li>The Polish Geological Institute (geochemical databases - the Geochemical Atlas of Poland - describing soils, sediments and surface water contamination the monitoring was carried out in 1992-1993).</li>
<li>The Bank HYDRO database (wells logs, hydrogeological maps).</li>
<li>The databases of IETU (digital elevation model (DEM) of the megasite, maps of soil contamination, forests and built-up areas, river and road networks, locations of villages).</li>
<li>The Institute of Meteorology and Water Management (climatic and hydrological data).</li>
<li>The chemical plant in Tarnowskie Góry</li>
</ul>

<strong>Difficulties found during data acquisition</strong><br/><br/>
Most of data (graphic, tabular and descriptive data) was available in form of paper reports or scanned raster, and they had to be transferred into a GIS database after manual and semi-automatic factorization.<br/><br/> 
Data on groundwater and soil contamination were controlled and managed by different institutions.<br/><br/>
The data inventory and acquisition is a time consuming process depending on good relations with different institutions - the owners of data. In Poland public institutions usually have better access to these data than commercial companies.<br/><br/>
The developed information was checked for topological errors and data completeness. The next step of quality assessment was connected with data integrity (consistency). The most critical data for the geological and hydrogeological model development were inconsistent with the DEM mainly due to errors with respect to boreholes and wells locations (needs for a GPS survey - partially done within the WELCOME project activity). The biggest problem of the database development was due to gaps in time frames of datasets, as well as in quality of data that describe the potential and actual sources of soil and (ground)water contamination.

<span class="midtitle">Conceptual model<br /><br /></span>
 <strong>Potential sources and contaminants</strong><br/><br/>
The general assumptions of the conceptual model (CM) for the Tarnowskie Góry megasite include:
<ul>
<li>The primary sources of contamination;</li>
 <ul>
 <li>heaps of hazardous waste deposited during operation of the chemical plant.</li>
 </ul>
<li>The secondary sources of contamination;</li>
<ul>
 <li>contaminated soil within and in vicinity of the chemical plant,</li>
 <li>quaternary deposits contaminated as a result of fate and transport processes.</li>
 </ul>
</ul>
The main sources of contamination are the waste heaps and the contaminated quaternary deposits. <br /><br />
<strong>Top view</strong><br />

<strong>Cross section</strong><br />

<span class="midtitle">Decision on IMS<br /><br /></span>
 <b>Delineation of RMZ at the Tarnowskie Góry megasite</b>
<br>
<br>
The Risk Management Zone (RMZ) was defined according to the conceptual model determined separately in three planes:
<ol>
<li>Top layer - ground level - human health risks connected with soil and surface water contamination,
<li>Quaternary layer with secondary contamination of bedrock and water body,
<li>Triassic layer with plume dispersion.
</ol>

The following criteria in setting up the RMZ were taken into account:
<ul>
<li>spread of contamination:
	<ul>
	<li>current extent of the contamination plumes,
	<li>dynamics of the contamination plume spread,
	</ul>	

<li>hydrogeochemical background,
<li>administrative aspects,
<li>social aspects including water supply needs and requirements,
<li>economical aspects.
</ul>

For each plane, the appropriate risk zone delineating criteria were used and risk zones were established.
<br>
<br>
1) Top layer
<ul>
<li>The risk zone was defined by the content of contaminants in soil. 
The content of barium in soil at the level of 200 mg/kg was set as the delimiting parameter. Human health risk analysis was performed to verify the risk zone extension.
</ul>

2) Quaternary layer
<ul>
<li>The risk zone was not defined because the Quaternary groundwater resources are not essential in the management of the megasite.
</ul>

3) Triassic layer
<ul>
<li>Risk plumes were defined base on modelling of contaminants spread in groundwater. 
The modelling was performed for various timeframes. 
It was established that the risk plumes are similar to the boron plumes, thus it was possible
 to simplify the delineation of the RMZ by choosing boron concentration in water as the critical parameter.
 The boron plume is the most extensive one because boron is a conservative element in the environment, 
and it is the main component of the industrial wastes with a high release potential.
</ul>

The criteria of delineating the RMZ were verified with respect to the strategic water extraction needs, 
legal requirements and stakeholders' interests.
<br>
<br>
The final RMZ was delineated as a maximum extent of the boron plume defined by the boron standard for drinking water. 
It was established on the base of plume dispersion modelling carried out for basic scenarios in the timeframe of 
30 years (see figure below).