The National Environmental Remediation Program in Hungary
(NERP)Workshop on „Contaminated Lands in Accession Countries: Benchmarking Historical Heritage and
National Actions”
REC 17-18 November, 2003
László Balásházy
Ministry of Environment and Water
Structure of presentation
1. Past
2. Legislation
3. Limit Value System
4. Vulnerability – Sensitivity
5. Future
1. Past
1991. Governmental Plan• Inventory, investigation and removal of accumulated
pollution• Solving environmental problems concerning former soviet
military barracks and sites
1996. The NERP was adopted by Parliament as the part of the National Environmental
Plan
1997. Governmental Decrees
Share of Financial Sources
30 % of them - for the NERP preparatory works and operating the programme.
• countrywide inventory of sources of pollution and contaminated sites threatening groundwater and soil - despite of liabilities
• establishment and operation GIS-based information system (KÁRINFO),
• drawing up of the National Remediation Priority List (NKPL),• legislation – technical and economic guidance documents, • preparatory of the Sub-programmes of different ministries • PR activity• management, co-ordination , supervision (control)
70 %- of them – for implementation the most urgent remediation investments concerning state responsibility
Main rules of responsibility
Main rule: polluter or/and the landownerMain cases of state responsibility• The operator is unknown, or has been dissolved
without a legal successor and• Has been performed prior to the entry into force of
the environmental law• If a state institution (e.g. army) has performed the
activity• The state has assumed liability due to the
privatisation
Since 1996 the Ministry responsible for remediation has invested in 80 clean-up projects launching in 47 locations
Locations with different levels of remediation:remediation completedremediation being in the stage of supplementary control (post-checking)remediation transferred to the Sub-Programme, being in competence of other Ministry remediation interrupted (suspended)remediation in process
2. Legislation
Basic rules are in the Environmental Act 1995.Detailed legislation come into force on 7th of June of 2000.
• Governmental Decree No. 33/2000 (III.17.) on activities affecting quality of groundwater
• Ministerial Decree No. 10/2000 (VI. 2.) on limit values needed for protection of the quality of groundwater, soils and geological medium
Outstanding result: the protection regime of groundwater and soil has been harmonised
Governmental Decree No. 33/2000 (III.17)
Phases of remediation
Survey of polluted site
Preliminary investigation
Detailed Investigation
Engineering measure -Remediation action
Follow –up monitoring
Supplem
entary control
3. Limit Value System
Severely Polluted or Damaged
A B Ci
Ab
E
D
Natural background
Load Pollution
Loaded
Pollution
Polluted
Remediation
Natural conditions
A: Background concentration
Ab: Demonstrated background concentration
B: Pollution limit value
Ci: Intervention pollution threshold value
(i= 1,2,3 according to vulnerability of the area)
D: Target value of remediation
E: Site specific pollution limit value
FOR GROUNDWATER AND GEOLOGICAL MEDIUM
4. Vulnerability – SensitivityGovernmental Decree No. 33/2000 (III.17)
„A” Areas of great sensitivity„B” Sensitive area„C” Less sensitive areas
Vulnerability ( sensitivity) map: Site vulnerability to pollution according to sensitivity categories.
Publications
1998. 1998. 2001. 2001.
1998. 2002.
Website, containing the information on NERP (OKKP):http://www.kvvm.hu/korny/karmentes
5. FutureThe main tasks of NERP – OKKP in the
future• The National Inventory of contaminated sites needs to be speeded up,
including historical studies.• The priority ranking of the sites to be cleaned-up should be completed
as soon as possible; • Contribution to the goals of WFD (achieving the good status at the
level of water bodies until 2015)• Development of Hungarian policy to comply with EU Soil Policy – on
contaminated sites• Utilisation of possible Structural and Cohesion assistance from the EU
funds• Increasing PR activity, involving the wide public – public awareness• Increasing financial support from the State budget and from other state
financial supporting system
Thank you for your attention!
