Guidelines

The natural concentrations of arsenic and other potentially harmful elements in soil and bedrock vary between different parts of Finland. The Tampere–Häme region in southern Finland is characterized by elevated natural concentrations of arsenic in the most common soil parent material, glacial till. In some cases, arsenic concentrations are also elevated in bedrock, groundwater and even in humus. The same applies in other countries. Arsenic concentrations are often higher in central and southern Europe than in Fennoscandia. Read more at: Arsenic regions

It is important to ensure that no harmful amounts of arsenic or other potentially harmful elements end up in groundwater or surface waters during major earthworks or excavations in rock aggregate production. The long-term use of drinking water containing high concentrations of arsenic poses a risk to human health, whereas arsenic in surface waters may particularly cause adverse effects on aquatic organisms. The generic guidelines developed during the ASROCKS project suggest methods for pathway recognition, sampling, the choice of analytical methods and selection of risk management tools. Read more at: Aggregate production and Construction.

The ASROCKS project did not develop any specific classification method for aggregate products. In the European Economic Area, CE marking will be required for aggregate products. The results from the different leaching tests applied in the ASROCKS project could also be useful for selecting suitable leaching test methods in other parts of Europe. Read more at: Aggregate products.

According to the results from the ASROCKS demonstration sites, the most important subjects to study when a new aggregate production site or construction site is being set up can be summarized in the list of seven Key issues.