Monitoring van de Paardenmarkt, een munitiestortplaats uit W.O.-I voor onze kust
Martens, R. (2005). Monitoring van de Paardenmarkt, een munitiestortplaats uit W.O.-I voor onze kust. MSc Thesis. Vrije Universiteit Brussel: Brussel. 128 + annexes pp. |
| Available in | Author | | Document type: Dissertation
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| Keywords | Monitoring
Waste disposal sites
ANE, Belgium, East Coast, Paardenmarkt [Marine Regions]
Marine/Coastal |
| Abstract | By the end of 1919 the Belgian government for safety reasons decided to dump an estimated 35.000 tons of ammunitions at sea, at a location called Paardenmarkt, a sandbank near Knokke-Heist. Probably, it concerns German ammunition. The amount of chemical ammunition could range between 20 and 30%. Today the Paardenmarkt is marked as a pentagon with surface of about 3 km² within which fishing and anchoring are prohibited. At present this ammunition dump is followed up by the DG Environment of the Federal Public Service of Health, Food chain Safety and Environment. The ammunition dump attracts the attention of other public services, scientific institutions and research teams, e.g. in the frame of a sustainable management of the North Sea. Over a period of ten years the DG environment in cooperation with a number of universities and scientists has written out, organised and granted a number of studies and sampling-analyses campaigns. This report gives a summary of these assignments and campaigns, as well as the results obtained and the current understandings. In chapters 1 and 2 the problem of dumping ammunition is seen in its international context and a multidisciplinary approach is identified as a prerequisite for success. In chapters 3 and 4 an overview of chronology, location and amount of the dumping are given. Chapter 5 describes the dismantling unit at Poelkapelle. This unit was constructed for treating the chemical ammunition found on the Flanders fields. Chapters 6 and 7 are devoted to topographic- and security studies. Modern techniques and data processing ensure the mapping of the dumpsite. Safety studies yield an estimate of the probability of an accident and deliver a practical guide on behalf of intervention teams. Chapter 8 applies a dispersion model, with a case study for mustard gas. Chapter 9 studies the silting up of the site. Chapter 10 chronologically overviews the past campaigns of sampling and analyses. Chapter 11 discusses other studies, such as the feasibility of capping and biomonitoring. Chapters 12 and 13 focus on the contact with the public and the approach followed in other countries. Finally, chapter 14 gives an overview of this work and formulates general recommendations. |
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