Open AccessA Framework to Evaluate the Impact of Armourstones on the Chemical Quality of Surface Water
Author(s) -
Lars Duester,
Dierk-Steffen Wahrendorf,
Corinna Brinkmann,
Anne-Lena Fabricius,
Björn Meermann,
Juergen Pelzer,
Dennis Ecker,
Monika Renner,
Harald Schmid,
Thomas A. Ternes,
Peter Heininger
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0168926
Subject(s) - leaching (pedology) , environmental science , water quality , surface water , environmental quality , human health , civil engineering , computer science , biochemical engineering , environmental engineering , engineering , soil science , ecology , medicine , environmental health , soil water , biology
Today, basic requirements for construction works include the protection of human health and of the environment. In the tension area between economic demands, circular flow economy and environmental safety, a link between the results from standardized leaching tests and the respective environmental quality standards must be created. To derive maximum release limits of metals and metalloids for armourstones in hydraulic engineering, this link is accomplished via a simple model approach. By treating natural materials and industrial by-products the same way, the article delivers an overview on the recent regulative situation in Europe as well as describes and discusses an innovative approach to derive maximum release limits for monolithic construction products in hydraulic engineering on a conceptual level. On a practical level, a list of test parameters is derived by connecting an extensive dataset (seven armourstone materials with five repetitions and 31 elements tested with the worldwide applied dynamic surface leaching test) with surface water quality standards and predicted no effect concentrations. Finally, the leaching tests results are compared with the envisaged maximum release limits, offering a direct comparison between natural materials and industrial by-products.