Implementing the European Water Framework Directive: The debate continues…

Borja, Ángel; Heinrich, Hartmut

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2005.01.002

Cited by 44 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…As the principal compartment of trace element accumulation, the assessment of sediment quality plays an important role in the good ecological and chemical status of water (Borja and Heinrich, 2005), which is the principal goal of the European Water Framework Directive (WFD) (ECC, 2000). Notwithstanding, this legal document does not mention the sediments as a compartment to be specifically investigated, this matrix constitutes one of the most important source of water contamination by trace elements, as well as, an important carrier of these hazardous substances within the rivers, reservoirs and other waters (Sekabira et al, 2010;Yaun et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of trace element pollution and its environmental risk to freshwater sediments influenced by anthropogenic contributions: The case study of Alqueva reservoir (Guadiana Basin)

Palma

Ledo

Alvarenga

2015

CATENA

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The Guadiana Basin (SW Iberian Peninsula) is affected by acid mine drainage (AMD), a consequence of ancient mining activities in the Iberian Pyrite Belt (IPB). Consequently, the sediments at the Alqueva reservoir (SE Portugal) in the Guadiana Basin are potentially contaminated by trace elements, which make important: (i) to characterize the status of trace element pollution of the sediments; (ii) to evaluate the mobility and the bioavailability of As, Cd, Cu, Cr, Pb and Zn; and (iii) to assess the environmental risk associated with the total and bioavailable concentrations of trace elements, using the sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) and the risk assessment code (RAC). Metal enrichment factors (EF) and geoaccumulation indexes (I geo ), determined taking into account the regional background levels, revealed that, among the metals analyzed, Cd contributed the highest to pollution levels followed by Pb and As. Despite the trace element contamination of the Alqueva sediments, the sequential extraction showed that most of them are found in the oxidizable and residual fractions, which indicates that they are sparingly bioavailable, with exception of Cd (acid-labile fraction) and Pb (reducible fraction). Based on the RAC, Cd was the only metal that presented a high risk, while Pb, As and Zn showed a medium risk. Moreover, the SQGs revealed the existence of certain areas of extremely high risk, particularly related to high concentrations of total As and, in less extent, of Pb and Cd, associated with AMD, wastewater discharges and runoff of plant protection products from agricultural fields located near the reservoir.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of trace element pollution and its environmental risk to freshwater sediments influenced by anthropogenic contributions: The case study of Alqueva reservoir (Guadiana Basin)

Palma

Ledo

Alvarenga

2015

CATENA

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“…The European Union (EU) has adopted several directives, strategies, recommendations and agreements that require a movement from sectoral-based to more ecosystem-based, holistic environmental management (e.g., Apitz 2005Apitz , 2006Apitz et al 2005Apitz et al , 2006bBorja 2005;Borja and Heinrich 2005;Ducrotoy and Elliott 1997;Elliott et al 1999;Read et al 2001). This summary discusses some of the current and emerging European regulations and strategies and their implications for riskbased sediment management.…”

Section: Regulatory Resistance To Risk-based Decisions Has Inhibited mentioning

confidence: 99%

Is risk-based, sustainable sediment management consistent with European policy?

Apitz¹

2008

J Soils Sediments

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Background, aims and scope One issue that remains particularly problematic for integrated and sustainable sediment management is that sediment plays differing roles in various sectoral, regulatory and statutory objectives. This means that across Europe, the level of consideration afforded to sediment management has thus far been primarily left to the discretion of individual countries and agencies. One of the consequences of the complex way in which sediments are regulated in Europe, and a possible over-reliance on the precautionary principle, is that there appears to be less regulatory acceptance of risk-based (rather than mass-based or chemical threshold-based) sediment remedial decisions, and thus resistance to some of the risk-based and in situ remedial technologies currently favoured in North America; "presumptive remedies" are being pushed by a number of agencies, and in-place and risk-based management are meeting great resistance. This summary discusses some of the current and emerging European regulations and strategies and their implications for risk-based sediment management.

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“…A series of sampling stations are established and the selected indicators are analyzed with a certain frequency, evaluating the ecological quality. The objective is to try to make the monitoring and the ecological evaluation in a simple way [3].…”

Section: Monitoring Programmentioning

confidence: 99%

Peculiarities of the Water Framework Directive implementation in the Canary Islands’ superficial waters

Barrio¹,

Álvarez²,

Santana³

et al. 2006

WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment, Vol 88

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Nowadays, Directive 2000/60/CEE is the European Union's basic instrument to manage hydrologic resources in a sustainable way. Its main objectives are the progressive reduction of pollutant spills and the achievement of a good ecological quality of superficial waters. The first aspect requires registering all the spilled substances and controlling their concentration in water. In the Canary Islands, it is complicated to establish the substances to be analyzed since the inventory of pressures is not updated. Therefore, most of the very toxic compounds (Annex X) are in the Monitoring Program. Regarding the evaluation of ecological quality, biological indicators and their quality thresholds are being defined by the intercalibration exercise, which is organised among states that belong to the same ecoregion. The Canary Islands belong to the Northeast Atlantic Geographical Intercalibration Group. Although it is being attempted to consider each place's idiosyncrasy (Spain,

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Implementing the European Water Framework Directive: The debate continues…

Cited by 44 publications

References 4 publications

Assessment of trace element pollution and its environmental risk to freshwater sediments influenced by anthropogenic contributions: The case study of Alqueva reservoir (Guadiana Basin)

Assessment of trace element pollution and its environmental risk to freshwater sediments influenced by anthropogenic contributions: The case study of Alqueva reservoir (Guadiana Basin)

Is risk-based, sustainable sediment management consistent with European policy?

Peculiarities of the Water Framework Directive implementation in the Canary Islands’ superficial waters

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