Pilot Project on Environment and Health Rapid Risk Assessment in Secondary Rivers of the Mean and Lower Danube Basin

Abstract

Following the dramatic cyanide spill of Baia Mare (Romania) in January 2000, a project jointly supported by Italian Ministry for the Environment and World Health Organisation, has been launched with the endorsement of European Environment and Health Committee.

Methodology is grounded on definition of an integrated environment and health risk assessment, directed to the development of homogeneous comparison between several Countries. Tool is directed especially to national and local authorities in order to help making first main decisions in terms of emergency planning and risk reduction policies.

The methodology was carried out with the involvement of various international institutions (contributions arrived from the EU Joint Research Centre, the Hungarian National Institute for Environment and Health, the Florida State University, the Danish Toxicological Centre).

For the need of rapidity, the information necessary to run the model was reduced to the minimum set capable to represent a complete (even if simplified) picture of the site risk. Suitable check lists have been printed for data gathering and a software tool has been developed for data management and results.

First test application in Bulgaria was carried out during first 4 months of 2000, with the help of the local Ministry of environment and water. The application required document and software translation into Bulgarian, training courses, site visits to selected industries and final discussion on the results.