Section 5 | 229
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Environmental impact assessment report | Section 5 | 229 effects observed in the nervous, haematopoietic and reproductive systems and the carcino- genic effect /129/. Mercury is found in the environment in one organic form and three inorganic forms (methyl- mercury, di-and monovalent ionic mercury and metallic mercury). In the aquatic environment, microbial transformation of inorganic mercury to organic mercury takes place. In the marine ecosystem, mercury accumulates in mussels and biomagnifies in the food chain. Top preda- tors, mainly seabirds and marine mammals, have been identified as most sensitive to mercu- ry /128/. Critical effects observed from ingestion of inorganic mercury include effects on the kidneys, whereas the ingestion of methylmercury effects the development of the nervous sys- tem /129/. Mercury, lead and cadmium are included in the HELCOM and OSPAR conventions and the EU’s programme for prioritised reduction of hazardous substances in the marine environment /130/. Safety levels are derived for sediment and water as part of the OSPAR regulation of all metals of concern in the Baltic Sea: As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn. Metals in the Finnish project area Surveys of metals in the Finnish project area has been conducted by Nord Stream project in 2005 – 2007. In 2008 environmental field investigations were carried out on the Kalbådagrund area. FIMR has conducted surveys in 1992-1993 and GTK in 2004 on metals in sediments in the Gulf of Finland. Finnish dredging manual /131/ classifies two concentration limits which define where the bot- tom material can be deposited. Concentrations of harmful substances below the lower level (limit 1) indicate background concentrations of the aquatic environment. Concentrations above the lower level indicate slightly contaminated sediments. These sediments may be deposited into the sea, but the procedure needs to be approved by the environment authori- ties. Concentrations above the upper level (limit 2) indicate heavily contaminated sediments that are generally not allowed to be deposited in the sea. According to Finnish guidelines for dredged sediment, the metal concentrations in recent sed- iments (0-2 cm) for arsenic (route 16), cadmium (both routes), chromium (centerline 2005), copper and zinc (route C16) showed exceedance of the lower level (limit 1) (see Table 5.13) which in cases of dredging in the coastal areas demand an approval from appropriate author- ity. Any exceeding of upper limit values (limit 2) of investigated metals was not observed, This indicates that these concentrations represent average concentrations of recent sediments along the Finnish coastal areas /131/. Concentrations of one or more harmful substances along the pipeline route as well as in the major part of the Gulf of Finland exceed the limit 1 but stay below the limit 2. However, the effect of pipeline construction cannot be compared to dredging and dumping, because the re-suspended sediments settle down practically to the same area where they orignate. According to OSPAR ecotoxicological assessment criteria (EAC) the mean concentra- tions of all studied metals except mercury, nickel and lead exceed the threshold value /132/. 230 | Environmental impact assessment report | Section 5 Metal concentrations are in line with previous studies on metals in the sediments /108/. Concentrations of metals in the sediment in the Finnish project area are in the mid-range compared with the overall variation along the pipeline route. Route C14 and Route C16 do not differ significantly with respect to sediment concentrations, although Route C16 has more areas of harder seabed and fewer sedimentation areas than Route C14. FIMR surveys in 1992-1993 on metals in sediments in the Gulf of Finland are shown on Atlas Maps GE-8 to GE-16. Results from surveys in 2004-2007 on metals and nutrients in sedi- ments are shown on Atlas Maps GE-17-F, GE-18-F, GE-20-F and GE-22-F. Chromium was not analysed by FIMR in 2007 and 2008; therefore, chromium results are from PeterGaz sur- vey (2005 and 2006) of 2 km wide route corridor (samples taken from 0-5 cm). These results provide an overview of the present level of metal concentrations in sediment. Table 5.13. Concentrations (mg/kg DM) of metals in recent sediments (0-2 cm) according to investigations carried out in the Finnish project area in 2007 and 2008 along Route C14 and Route C16 (taken from area where the routes deviate). Abbreviations and acronyms: Route: Samples taken either along route C14 or C16. For chromium, samples were taken along the centerline drawn in 2005. N > LOQ: number of samples with concentration above limits of quantification; N: total number of samples. Mean: arithmetic mean value. Min: minimum value above limits of quantification. Max: maximum value. Limit value / Finnish dredging manual: Metal concentrations in sediments below the lower limit indicate harmless concentrations to aquatic environment. Mean concentration value above the lower limit value (limit 1) indicates sediments with concentrations that may be deposited but needs a approval from appropriate author- ity. Mean concentrations above the upper limit value (limit 2) indicates sediments that are generally not allowed to be deposited in the sea. If the mean concentration value exceeds the limit value, it has been bolded. Limit value / OSPAR dredging manual: Concentration values above the limit value indicate sediments with such concentrations that may be harmful if sediments are deposited into the sea. If the mean concentration value exceeds the limit value, it has been bolded. Mean concentration, Limit value / Finnish Limit value / Metals Route N>LOQ (N) mg/kg DM dredging manual OSPAR EAC (min - max) (Category 1 -2) Arsenic C14 29 (29) 9.4 (1.2 – 21.4) 15 – 60 7.2 (As) C16 25 (25) 16.7 (2.4 – 55.1) Cadmium C14 29 (29) 0.9 (0.1 – 4.4) 0.5 – 2.5 0.7 (Cd) C16 25 (25) 1.6 (0.6 – 2.3) Chromium Centerline 238 (238) 68 (16.5 – 116) 65 – 270 52 (Cr) 2005/2006 Copper C14 29 (29) 51 (5.6 – 123) 50 – 90 19 (Cu) C16 25 (25) 40.3 (10.4 – 57.1) Mercury C14 23 (29) 0.04 (0.02 – 0.14) 0.1 – 1 0.13 (Hg) C16 21 (25) 0.08 (<0.04 – 0.13) Nickel C14 29 (29) 37 (4.6 – 66) 45 – 60 16 (Ni) C16 25 (25) 37.2 (11.2 – 51.5) Lead C14 29 (29) 31 (14.9 – 62) 40 – 200 30 (Pb) C16 25 (25) 32.6 (11.2 – 53.8) Zinc C14 29 (29) 173 (32 – 429) 170 – 500 12 (Zn) C16 25 (25) 181 (70 – 247) Environmental impact assessment report | Section 5 | 231 Intermediate sediment levels for some of the metals (e.g., lead, nickel and arsenic) indicate an increasing trend towards the Swedish project area of the Baltic Sea, thus coinciding with the sedimentation areas. Figure 5.39. Cadmium (Cd) levels in the sediment according to the Nord Stream field survey carried out in 2008, along one section where Route C14 and Route C16 diverge. This map shows how seabed type affects sampling: No samples can be taken from hard seabed. 5.3.5.2 Organic contaminants There have been substantial inputs of organic contaminants in the Baltic Sea from numer- ous sources over the past 50 years. Organic pollutants reach the sea via river runoff, atmos- pheric deposition and direct discharge of effluents. Sources include industrial discharg- es, such as the organochlorines in effluent from pulp and paper mills, runoff from farmland, dumped waste and special paints used on ships and boats. Inputs of several organic pollut- ants, notably certain organochlorine pesticides, such as DDT and technical-grade hexachlo- rocyclohexanes (HCH isomers), have decreased because these substances have been com- pletely banned since the 1980s. The main sources of dioxins are combustion processes, such as waste incineration and metal smelting and refining. Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-diox- ins (PCDDs) and furans and dioxin-like PCBs, which are often called ’dioxins‘ as a group, are ubiquitous environmental contaminants. The total concentration of dioxins is usually present- 232 | Environmental impact assessment report | Section 5 ed as a toxicity equivalent (TEQ), which is comparable to the most toxic dioxin compound, 2,3,7,8-TCDD. Many of the organic contaminants are resistant to biological degradation or only very slow- ly degradable, and they have a high potential for bioaccumulation in organic material. Based on these properties, the organic contaminants tend to accumulate in the food chain. The hex- achlorocyclohexanes (HCHs) deviate from this general observation, as they do not tend to be bioaccumulated and tend to persist in the water phase rather than in sediment. Also, PAHs (polyaromatic hydrocarbons) do not tend to bioaccumulate due to the metabolism of the sub- stances. However, PAHs have a low water solubility and high affinity for organic matter. The organic contaminants in this study are included in the HELCOM and OSPAR conven- tions and the EU’s programme for prioritised reduction of hazardous substances in the marine environment (see Table 5.14) /130/. As part of OSPAR regulations, safety levels have been established for some of the organic contaminants in sediment. Due to the organic con- taminants’ high affinity for organic matter, safety levels for the substances in the water phase are in general missing. However, safety levels of lindane, TBT and some of the PAHs have been established /133/. Table 5.14. Substances regulated in HELCOM, OSPAR and EU programmes for hazardous substances (in- dicated by X). Chemicals HELCOM OSPAR EU CHTOT Sum of cis- and transchlordane X X HCB Hexachlorobenzene X X DBTIN Dibutyltin XXX MBTIN Monobutyltin XXX TBTIN Tributyltin XXX SUMDDT Sum of DDTs (p,p) (o,p), DDE (o,p) and DDD (o,p) X X SUMHCH Sum of hexachlorocyclohexanes (alpha, beta and gamma) X X X SUM16PAH Sum of 16 PAH congeners XXX SUM7PCB Sum of 7 PCB congeners XXX SUM9PCB Sum of 9 PCB congeners XXX Each of the organic contaminants is described below in terms of toxicity and properties in the marine environment.