Monitoring of heavy metal contamination at the Norwegian Armed Forces munitions demolition facility in Lærdal municipality – results from 2020
FFI-Report
2021
This publication is only available in Norwegian
About the publication
Report number
21/01815
ISBN
978-82-464-3371-4
Format
PDF-document
Size
3.2 MB
Language
Norwegian
In Øyradalen southeast of Lærdal center, the Norwegian Armed Forces has a demolition facility,
where munitions are demolished by open air detonation. This area was established in 1976, and
has since been used for demolition of munitions. From 1991 until today, soil samples from
Øyradalen have been analyzed to monitor the concentration of heavy metals. In 2008, the
Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI) carried out an evaluation of the results from
this monitoring, and some adjustments of the monitoring program were recommended. In
addition to the facility in Øyradalen, a destruction facility for small arms munitions and propellant
is localized in Tønjumdalen. The destruction of such munitions takes place in an incinerator
connected to a treatment plant. The contamination in this area has not been regularly
monitored. In 2008 FFI recommended that this area should be included in the monitoring
program. This report present results from the monitoring of the munitions-related
contamination in Øyradalen and Tønjumdalen in 2020.
The concentrations of copper in the demolition area in Øyradalen were higher than at the
reference station in the valley. The mean concentration of copper in the demolition area was
461 mg/kg in 2020. This concentration was similar to the concentration measured in 2019 (516
mg/kg). Zinc and lead levels were also above background levels, while the concentrations of
other heavy metals were equivalent to background levels. The lead concentrations have shown
a small increase during the last years (since 2016), but there was no increase from 2019 (108
mg/kg) to 2020 (104 mg/kg). The concentrations of the other metals in the demolition area have
not changed significantly during the last years, and the contamination levels in Øyradalen are
within the national limits for recreation areas. It is unlikely that the animals grazing on the
demolition area is at risk for poisoning, but due to locally high copper concentrations, it cannot
be totally excluded. In the river Nivla, which runs through the demolition area, the concentration
of copper and lead did not exceed the limit value in any of the sampling points (7.8 μg Cu/L and
1.2 μg Pb/L). Based on metal values measured in Nivla in 2018, effects on aquatic organisms is
negligible.
The concentrations of lead in soil near the destruction facility in Tønjumdalen were above
background levels, while the concentrations of other heavy metals were comparable with the
background levels. The lead concentration in the soil in this area was on the same level in 2020
as previous years. Still, the contamination level in Tønjumdalen was within the national limits for
recreational areas, and no risk for grazing animals is expected. The content of munitions-related
metals in the river Kuvella in Tønjumdalen were below effect levels for aquatic organisms, and
below drinking water standards.
The concentration of metals in soil and water at the demolition areas in Tønjumdalen and
Ørjadalen pose a low risk to humans and local fauna. However, it is uncertain whether the risk
will change in the future, as these areas are still in use. FFI therefore recommends further
monitoring.