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Qualitative Public Health Risk and Impact Assessment – TVIK / DIV Screw Factory - Knin_Volume00_A

0 Executive Summary Decades of industrialization and extensive exploitation of natural resources have left certain number of areas in the country heavily polluted. Over the past decade the Republic of Croatia has moved from centrally planned economy, with government ownership and management of the means of production, towards free market economy, with varying level of privatisation. Within the process of privatisation, it is essential that old environmental burdens left behind by state-controlled industry be addressed: problems that were once (theoretically) the governments have now been transferred over to new owners, in most cases without clear specification of environmental responsibility. Old environmental contaminated industrial sites represent a possible risk for humans who live in or near the contaminated areas, because of either their direct negative impact on the human health or, indirectly, through pollutants in the food chain production. This environmental health risk assessment report is retrospective and site specific focused on the desirable remediation and/or abatement of the crude oil originating from the production process which did transmit as a pollutant and chemical contaminant into deeper layers of aquifers into the ground water layers in the vicinity of the screw factory TVIK/DIV in Municipality of Knin is Šibensko Kninska County (SKC). Health impact assessment to the public should be one of the key principles in the process of decision-making in physical planning and the construction of industrial, infrastructure and other facilities. It is absolutely necessary to integrate environmental health in the processes of strategic environmental and health assessment especially in the areas where the hazardous waste hot spots are indentified. Therefore, this report should give basic data about the health risk connected to harmless development and reconstruction of potentially hazardous industries related to a accidents connected with uncontrolled crude oil or oil product release into the environment. Based on this report, one of the main tasks of the environmental health services (and other responsible stakeholders) will be to provide appropriate information and education of the TVIK/DIV company workers and Knin municipality population, and to ensure a timely and accurate notification on possible health hazards, generate correct risk perception, as well as to provide public cooperation and understanding when introducing particular environment and health protection measures due to a desirable reconstruction of the TVIK/DIV industrial facilities and remediation of existing industrial hazardous chemical waste hot spots around the factory. The town Knin has a special status in Republic Croatia because of its specific geopolitical importance and role in Homeland war. It belongs to the special areas of state welfare. Presently, there are 113.000 inhabitants of Šibenik Knin County (SKC), which makes about 2.6 % of all Croatian population. The population density is 39 inhabitants per square kilometre, which is quite less than the national average of 78.40 inhabitants per square kilometre. Knin municipality (town and its surroundings) has somewhere around 21500 inhabitants and is a town with the national largest population growth. This number is still controversy because the migration through the Knin municipality is one of the largest in the country and there are in realty over 34000 people registered. Inhabitant density is very low and still not comparable to Croatian average meaning that health statistic for comparison and risk assessment can and should be evaluated regarding that fact. It is important to point out that health statistic and epidemiological data for town Knin are to a high content affected with the Homeland war and migrations which accompanied it. The town has almost completely exchanged the population. This fact was an obstacle in performing health risk assessment for the given hazard and risk factors. This document summarizes the current state and the exact location of soil pollution at the location of TVIN Knin, Republic of Croatia onto the south- south west direction of the factory, where due to a Homeland war activities, an oil tank with crude oil has been damaged and 250 m3 oil has penetrated through the existing sewer system into the surrounding non inhabitated area. The investigations have confirmed the presence of pollution with crude oil that should be cleaned (due to slow biodegradability) in order to decrease and / or eliminate the ground water pollution and determined spatial and vertical distribution of it. Identified main risk factors irrefutable associated with occurred crude oil and other oily chemicals releases into the environment around the TVIK/DIV screw factory possibly affecting the environmental health were: • Chemical and toxicological substances and Trace Metals/Heavy Metals originating from oil products (crude oil, other types of oil and related chemicals) in ground water Evident migration paths of hazardous substances (chemicals) were found to be ground water flow through aquifer, surface water flows, and in the very small amount possible evaporation of light chemical compounds from oil dispersed by the air depending on meteorological situation in Knin. Knin is one of the hottest town regions in Croatia with sub-Mediterranean climate and average summer temperatures above 300. Dust and airborne suspended particles dispersion are not an issue. Receptors are identified to be a special group of Knin municipality population working at the screw factory plant and group of inhabitants living in the vicinity (not more than 500 m distance) from the factory directly and a whole population possibly drinking water from uncontrolled private ground water wells supply . Number of possible impacts depends on a number of people who are in a situation to get at certain contact with polluted ground water which is very low comparing to total Knin municipality population. Results regarding Hazardousness, Migration / Reception and final risk : • Air (dust, particles and gas emission) + evaporation = negligible Risk • Water/groundwater very low - no abnormalities identified so far • Soil for agriculture purposes - negligible • Turf and soil in slough area near the factory – low risk for biodiversity • Surface waters low – medium in case of geotechnical interference According to risk assessment matrix evident receptors are Limited and Identified, which defines environmental health risk as: Chemicals originating from PAH HLL Trace/heavy metals HHL There is no official recording of the chemical toxins synergic use and occupational carcinogens. There is insufficient information on dose-effect relations in some segments of the chemical and metallurgy industry. There are no data of chemical toxins synergy with specific environmental biodiversity factors. Recent data (although epidemiological very inconsequent because of the high migration rate through SKC) obtained for morbidity and mortality showed that no relevant difference to other industrialized urban parts of RH exists or that it is unreasonable and not plausible to draw any connection with the defined hazards/risk factors even when further remediation – technological enhancement of polluted soil and sludge and surface waters will take place. Capping and bioremediation will reduce the existing very low risk on drinking water dependent diseases to zero and will certainly enhance biodiversity. Taking into account all relevant, and to authors of this report, accessible public health status data, air pollution monitoring data, chemical analysis data, toxicology data and all other data necessary for finishing the high quality health risk report describing the risk impact to a Knin municipality population from existing hot spots in vicinity of screw factory in Knin polluted with crude oil and oil products the conclusion is that the described health risk of SKM in comparison to Croatia is showing no significant differences. Current recognizable risk and potential impacts to environmental health, their optimisation and justification, allow us to state that a justified remediation purpose taken over the polluted hot spots over a period up to several years is acceptable.

TENORM; helath risk; electronic dosemeter; chemical hazard; bioremediation; waste management

PHARE 2006: "Development of hazardous waste management system, including the identification and management of "hot spot sites" in Croatia". The project PHARE 2006 "Development of hazardous waste management system, including the identification and management of "hot spot sites" in Croatia" started in December 2008 and will end in December 2010. The project is implemented by the consortium composed of the Danish company Ramboll Danmark A/S, Eptisa from Spain and Project Management Ltd in Ireland. The overall objective of this project is to improve environmental conditions in the Republic of Croatia through the establishment of environmentally sound management of hazardous waste (HW).