Emissions to water by Waste management companies in the Netherlands, 1990-2001
Emissions to water by waste management companies are low, when taken over the country as a whole. Local emissions from landfills can lead to exceedances of the water quality standards.
| 1990 | 1995 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | of which | ||
| direct | indirect | ||||||
| Nutrients | 1 000 kg | ||||||
| Nitrogen (as N total) | 2 790 | 5 630 | 5 390 | 5 160 | 5 110 | 228 | 4 885 |
| Phosphorus (as P total) | 81.0 | 55.2 | 48.4 | 131 | 110 | 1.09 | 109 |
| Metals | |||||||
| Cadmium (Cd) | 0.0998 | 0.0695 | 0.0595 | 0.0578 | 0.0612 | 0.0204 | 0.0408 |
| Chromium (Cr) | 1.00 | 2.59 | 1.84 | 1.71 | 2.11 | 0.254 | 1.86 |
| Copper (Cu) | 0.602 | 2.82 | 0.97 | 1.51 | 1.30 | 0.172 | 1.13 |
| Mercury (Hg) | 0.0610 | 0.103 | 0.0445 | 0.0290 | 0.0576 | 0.0016 | 0.0419 |
| Lead (Pb) | 0.896 | 0.908 | 0.84 | 1.01 | 0.786 | 0.140 | 0.646 |
| Nickel (Ni) | 1.71 | 1.69 | 1.72 | 1.63 | 1.60 | 0.201 | 1.40 |
| Zinc (Zn) | 3.24 | 5.81 | 4.70 | 7.76 | 7.17 | 0.981 | 6.19 |
| Source: CCDM (2003). | CBS/EDC/Sep03/0161 | ||||||
No major contribution to emissions to water
The emissions of nitrogen, phosphorus and the heavy metals by Waste management companies amount to less than 10% of national emissions. The proportion accounted for by landfills (and old landfills in particular) is small but the concentrated nature of these emissions may result in local exceedances of the quality standards (VROM, 2001).
There are only a few companies that will fail to meet the emission requirements for specific substances for the Desired Quality Standard for Water in 2010. This means that measures for the target sector as a whole are not required and that action via the authorisation procedures will suffice.
What are direct and indirect emissions?
The table lists the emissions from the various sources. It shows both direct emissions to surface water and indirect discharges to the sewer system. Discharges to the sewer system only reach the surface water after treatment; they are therefore indirect. Since a portion of these substances is removed by water treatment plants, the ultimate burden on surface water is lower.
References
- CCDM (2003). Emissiemonitor. Jaarcijfers 2001 en ramingen 2002. Datawarehouse-Emissieregistratie. Coördinatiecommissie Doelgroepmonitoring, The Hague.
- VROM, 2001. Emissiereductiedoelstellingen prioritaire stoffen. Notitie in het kader van NMP4. Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment, The Hague.
Relevant sections and indicators in the Environmental Data Compendium
- Guide to 'Waste management measures' section
- Discharges into water and burden on surface water in the Netherlands, 1990, 1995, 1999 and 2000
- Guide to Environmental theme of Eutrophication
- Guide to Environmental theme of Toxic and hazardous substances
Relevant information outside of the Environmental Data Compendium
- Recent emission data and descriptions of the calculation methods used (meta-information) can be viewed in detail on the Data Warehouse of the 'Emissieregistratie' website.
