- Email: [email protected]
Activities in nonpoint pollution control in rural areas of Poland
Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429 – 434
www.elsevier.com/locate/ecoleng
Activities in nonpoint pollution control in rural areas of Poland Maciej Dzikiewicz * Water Supply Foundation, Skwer Kard. S. Wyszynskiego 6, 01 -015 Warsaw, Poland
Abstract Agriculture can contribute to water quality deterioration through the release of sediments, pesticides, animal manure, fertilisers and other sources of inorganic and organic matter. Nonpoint pollution control activities in rural areas of Poland are insufficient to meet the demands of the recovering agricultural production. There is still a need for agricultural runoff monitoring programs for identification, quantification and control of nonpoint sources. Special efforts are required to familiarise farmers with environmental friendly agricultural production technologies and ‘good agricultural practices’. This paper describes typical nonpoint sources from Polish agriculture. It presents all these activities and achievement in nonpoint pollution control after 1989, when systemic changes began and environmental problems became more visible. © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Nonpoint sources; Leaching of nutrients; Pesticides; Manure; Wastewater treatment
1. Introduction Compared to abatement of point source pollution, where visible progress has been achieved, pollution from nonpoint sources is a much more complicated issue to handle as it implies significant legislative and infrastructural changes at the national level prior to investment activities. Difficulties of nonpoint agricultural pollution results from the dispersion of their products. Migration of these compounds occurs as the result of stochastic factors (e.g. rains, thaws), while the quantity of loads emitted from the basin flowing to surface waters is the result of a great number of * Tel.: +48-22-838-4683; fax: + 48-22-838-6713. E-mail address: [email protected] (M. Dzikiewicz)
factors among which the most important are physiography, farm implements of the basin and water conditions predominant in the basin. Methods of evaluation of the role of agriculture in water pollution and forecasting and control of agricultural pollution should therefore refer to the character of the basin from which this pollution flows to surface waters in hydrologic cycle as well as to the reaction of the basin to changeable meteorological or hydrologic conditions. Ninety nine point seven percent of Polish territory belongs to the Baltic Sea drainage area. The biggest part of this area belongs to the Vistula River basin (54.0%) and the Odra River basin (33.9%). The rest is created by small rivers of the Pomerania basins. Eight point seven percent of Polish territory has a hilly character and 91.3%
0925-8574/00/$ - see front matter © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 9 2 5 - 8 5 7 4 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 0 6 6 - X
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M. Dzikiewicz / Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429–434
are typically lowlands. The area of Poland is 312 690 km2 and 59.8% of this area is arable land with light soils. This constitutes 40% of all agricultural land in the Baltic Sea drainage area. Poland has a population of 38.6 million and 38.1% of this population live in rural areas. 2. Nonpoint sources Typical nonpoint sources of pollution from agriculture are: 1. Leaching of nitrogen and phosphorus from arable land; 2. Leaching of nitrogen and phosphorus due to inappropriate storage of manure from animal production;
3. Atmospheric emissions of ammonia from manure due to inappropriate storage and field application; 4. Leaching of pesticides due to inappropriate application techniques and storage facilities; 5. Inadequate treatment of wastewater in rural areas. An increase in agricultural production demands the use of mineral fertilisers containing nitrogen and phosphorus. The highest usage of fertilisers in Poland occurred during 1975–1990. After 1990 the regression in application of fertilisers was observed as a result of the collapse of the communist economic system, although the mineral fertiliser application level was not high if related to the crop yields and soil fertility (Fig. 1). The dose
Fig. 1. Mineral fertiliser application in provinces in 1995.
M. Dzikiewicz / Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429–434
Fig. 2. Mineral fertiliser application in recent years
of mineral fertilisers in Poland is diversified depending upon the regional specialisation and intensity of crop production, the farm structure and the state of development. Unfortunately there are no data available regarding the use of mineral fertiliser in river basins but only in administration regions (Fig. 2). At present, the main cause of water pollution in Poland is animal husbandry. In most of the farms, livestock are housed on straw and the majority of waste is in the form of solid manure. The basic aim is to remove the waste as cheaply as possible. In most cases, solid manure is simply stored on the ground behind the farm buildings. Animal production, expressed in so called big conversion units (djp, which is equivalent 500 kg animal weight) was 52 djp per 100 ha in 1994. This animal production yields an annual load of manure of 215.8 kg BOD5 ha − 1, 43.0 kg N ha − 1 and 6.8 kg P ha − 1. Unfortunately, improper systems of manure storage, handling and dosing result in large dispersions of organic and nutrient pollutants into the environment. The nitrogen surplus in agriculture is emitted to the atmosphere in the form of ammonia or nitrogen oxides, washed out to surface or ground waters in the form of nitrates and, in smaller amounts, as ammonia ion or dissolved organic nitrogen compounds. The phosphorus surpluses accumulated in the soil can be transported to the
431
surface waters with surface runoff or wind and water erosion. Mineral balances are influenced by the changes in fertiliser use, the supply of animal manure and the mineral absorption by crops. In Poland an estimation of nutrient surpluses is difficult because in the many small farms (55.3% of Polish farms are smaller than 5 ha) agricultural production only serves for food self-sufficiency of the farmer’s family. It is estimated that 35% of the nitrogen surplus is lost due to atmospheric emissions of ammonia. Atmospheric emissions of ammonia from agricultural sources cause strong acidity of rainwater as well as emissions of SO2 and NOx. It is estimated that emissions of ammonia decreased in Poland due to the decrease in use of mineral fertilisers and animal production after 1990. In 1993, atmospheric emissions of ammonia were estimated at 392 000 t NH3 a − 1. Of this, 59.6% was from animal manure, 20.7% from mineral fertiliser use and 9.4% from crop release (Sapek, 1996). Soil permeability and slope of agricultural areas have a large impact on scrubbing of nitrogen and phosphorus from these areas into surface waters. Data obtained from the Vistula basin confirm that nutrient outflow from the upper part of the basin (10.6 kg N ha − 1 year − 1) was higher than in the middle and lower parts (4.85 kg N ha − 1 year − 1), which is associated with great water erosion upon mountainous and piedmont areas and soil of low permeability. In 1993, BOD5, total nitrogen load and total phosphorus load discharged by rivers from Polish territory to the Baltic Sea, was 227 000, 247 000 and 12 200 t a − 1 respectively. Around 60% of total nitrogen and 35% of total phosphorus comes from agricultural nonpoint sources. The consumption of agricultural pesticides in Poland was always lower in comparison with the European Union countries, and in 1990 it fell significantly, due to the economic problems. But now the use of pesticides is growing again; in 1994 it was 0.4 kg ha − 1. The use of pesticides results in widespread environmental pollution of surface waters, groundwater, rainwater and air. Pesticides from the group of halogen organic insecticides such as DDT and its metabolites belong to the group of chemical compounds especially danger-
432
M. Dzikiewicz / Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429–434
ous to the water environment, due to their toxicity, stability and resistance to biological degradation. DDT was banned in 1973. Unfortunately, the average concentration level of DDT in the Vistula River in 1990 varied from 0.02 to 0.10 mg dm − 3 depending on the river section. Other less persistent pesticides with shorter decomposition times and no tendencies for bioaccumulation (carbonate and phosphor-organic insecticides), as well as certain herbicides (derivatives of chlorophenoxyacetic acid), were seldom found in the investigated waters and then mainly during the period of application. The concentrations of these compounds were in the range of 4.15 – 20.0 mg dm − 3 (Zelechowska and Ceglarski, 1991). According to statistical data, Poland has 2 041 400 farms in rural areas. The number of farms connected to water supply systems has increased rapidly in the last few years (Fig. 3). In 1995, it comprised 56% of all farms. However, the number of farms connected to wastewater treatment systems (3.7% of all farms) shows that the process of construction of such facilities in rural area has just started. The disproportion between connection to the water supply systems and sewage systems is clearly seen in the Fig. 3. Forty four percent of households are not equipped with flush toilets. There are privies still in use. Most of the farms have poorly designed and constructed cesspools or on-site treatment, which causes
groundwater and surface water pollution. Untreated wastewater and sewage from these systems are often trucked onto the fields, meadows, forests, ditches or impediments.
3. Activities, achievements and needs
3.1. Monitoring and data bases Water pollution at the most important river sections of Polish territory has been monitored since the year 1972 by the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management, Marine Department in Gdynia. The level of pesticides in surface waters (especially halogen organic insecticides) is also controlled within the framework of this monitoring programme. In the eighties, numerous investigations were carried out on the outflow of nutrients compounds from experimental agricultural basins (Dojlido et al., 1990; Erndt and Zeglin, 1990). In these areas there were no point sources of pollutants. They were typical for agricultural areas in different regions of Poland. Data from these fragmentary basins were collected. The characteristics of pollutants outflow in rivers to the Baltic Sea can be used as a base for the estimation of nutrients outflow from nonpoint sources. There is still a need for separate agricultural runoff monitoring programs for different
Fig. 3. Number of farms connected to waterline systems and sewage systems in Poland. Grey columns: farms connected to waterline systems, black columns: farms connected to sewage systems.
M. Dzikiewicz / Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429–434
rivers, as well as monitoring of runoff and ammonia losses on the farm level, in order to convince rural populations how dangerous nonpoint pollution is.
3.2. Education The education level of the farmers is very low. Two point six percent of farmers have a university education, 16.2% completed secondary education, 30% completed vocational schools, 43.9% elementary schools and 5.8% have less than an elementary education. The Ministry of Agriculture has Agricultural Extension Service Centres (ODR) in every administration region in Poland. These centres provide agricultural production service and organise training, seminars and demonstration projects for farmers. Weak organisation of these institutions causes their activities to be inadequate for the needs. Most of the farmers request the services free of charge. The advisors at the community level who work with the farmers, agricultural technical school teachers and agriculture departments’ activists are not always familiar with environmental friendly agricultural production technologies and ‘good agricultural practices’. Quite a lot of environmental courses, training, and meetings for rural inhabitants have been organised, which are necessary elements for the development and gradual expansion and strengthening of the base of support for wastewater treatment projects among the rural communities. For example, the Water Supply Foundation organised 162 training sessions for 4092 participants on building on-site wastewater treatment plants and 91 training sessions for 2086 participants on the construction of collective sewage treatment plants and sewage systems. There is a need for individual advisory programs for every willing farmer that would include: 1. Chemical analysis of fodder and soil as a basis for recommendations, 2. Annual planning of animal and plant production including feeding and fertilisation, 3. Nutrient balance of the farm, 4. Efficient use of pesticides and chemical spraying equipment,
433
5. Presentation of the suitable solutions of chemical storage facilities, manure storage facilities and domestic sewage treatment facilities, 6. Simplified demonstrations/trials on the farm focusing on fertilisation and efficient use of manure, 7. Field meetings with farmers.
3.3. Manure storage facilities There are no regulations and standards or even traditional design and construction rules for farm waste facility collection and storage. The legislative procedure is in a very early stage. There are some proposals of new regulations and standards that have not been approved. It is evident that investments in storage capacities and spreading technologies are necessary for a better use of manure and environmental protection on almost all farms. But there is an urgent need for a financial strategy on the national level to solve the problem of how these projects should be supported. At the moment there are few demonstration projects where such facilities have been constructed with the support of founding institutions for selected farmers. For example, 261 manure storage tanks have been built with 80% financial support from the PHARE Programme ‘Rural Infrastructure for Water Management’.
3.4. Wastewater treatment facilities Under the communist regime, sewage treatment issues in the rural environment went unnoticed by subsequent governments. Only after 1989, when systemic changes began, the newly elected local governments gradually became aware of the problem. However, due to underdevelopment of other rural infrastructure elements such as water supply, roads or telecommunications and the population’s low awareness and mental impoverishment over the recent years, the solution of the problem is still often put off to ‘some time in the future’. All wastewater treatment plants have to meet Polish effluent standards of 30 mg l − 1 for BOD, 50 mg l − 1 for suspended solids, 30 mg l − 1 for total nitrogen, and 5 mg l − 1 for total phosphorus for plants greater than 25 population equivalents. It
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M. Dzikiewicz / Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429–434
is evident that these standards lead to high construction costs of the plants. On the other hand, the cost of construction of sewers is the largest in comparison with other infrastructure elements. In this area, the financial support institutions on the national level have been active since 1989. Even with such organised financial support, achievements are not clearly visible in Fig. 3. But the annual growth of farms connected to sewage systems in the last 4 years has varied from 63 to 100%. There is still a need to increase the rural population awareness and to create new funding possibilities when the old ones are finishing, in order to continue successfully this progress.
gress has been slow. However, the target has been reached mainly due to decreased use of fertilisers and decreased agricultural production caused by structural changes and economic difficulties. But evidenced in Fig. 1, economic recovery might again lead to an increase in the agricultural runoff. Therefore, the advisory and financial organisations need to be strengthened to include environmental awareness early in the modernisation process of Polish agriculture. Special efforts are needed to prevent the continuation of inappropriate farm waste storage and field application practices.
References
4. Conclusions An assessment of the various activities and programmes to limit or reduce the pollution in Poland indicates that significantly more progress has been made in the control of pollution from industrial and municipal point sources than in the control of pollution from diffuse sources, including agriculture. Polish agriculture remains a major anthropogenic source of nutrient input to the Baltic Sea. According to an assessment presented to the Helsinki Commission on national programmes to reduce nutrient outflow by 50%, pro-
.
Dojlido, J., Leszczynski, A., Wlodarczyk, E., 1990. Zanieczyszczenia obszarowe w zlewni rzeki Skierniewki. Materialy Seminaryjne 26, IMUZ, Falenty. In Polish. Erndt, E., Zeglin, M., 1990. Ladunki podstawowych skladniko´w nawozowych w Potoku Koscieliskim. Materialy Seminaryjne 26. IMUZ, Falenty. In Polish. Sapek, A., 1996. Udzial rolnictwa w zanieczyszczaniu wody skladnikami nawozowymi. Zeszyty Edukacyjne 1/96, IMUZ, Falenty, pp. 9 – 33 In Polish. Zelechowska, A., Ceglarski, R., 1991. Microorganic pollution of surface waters — Polish dilemma and world applied solutions. In: Proceedings of the Conference on Water Resources Management and Water Pollution Control, September 1991, Warsaw, pp. 217 – 243.
www.elsevier.com/locate/ecoleng
Activities in nonpoint pollution control in rural areas of Poland Maciej Dzikiewicz * Water Supply Foundation, Skwer Kard. S. Wyszynskiego 6, 01 -015 Warsaw, Poland
Abstract Agriculture can contribute to water quality deterioration through the release of sediments, pesticides, animal manure, fertilisers and other sources of inorganic and organic matter. Nonpoint pollution control activities in rural areas of Poland are insufficient to meet the demands of the recovering agricultural production. There is still a need for agricultural runoff monitoring programs for identification, quantification and control of nonpoint sources. Special efforts are required to familiarise farmers with environmental friendly agricultural production technologies and ‘good agricultural practices’. This paper describes typical nonpoint sources from Polish agriculture. It presents all these activities and achievement in nonpoint pollution control after 1989, when systemic changes began and environmental problems became more visible. © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Nonpoint sources; Leaching of nutrients; Pesticides; Manure; Wastewater treatment
1. Introduction Compared to abatement of point source pollution, where visible progress has been achieved, pollution from nonpoint sources is a much more complicated issue to handle as it implies significant legislative and infrastructural changes at the national level prior to investment activities. Difficulties of nonpoint agricultural pollution results from the dispersion of their products. Migration of these compounds occurs as the result of stochastic factors (e.g. rains, thaws), while the quantity of loads emitted from the basin flowing to surface waters is the result of a great number of * Tel.: +48-22-838-4683; fax: + 48-22-838-6713. E-mail address: [email protected] (M. Dzikiewicz)
factors among which the most important are physiography, farm implements of the basin and water conditions predominant in the basin. Methods of evaluation of the role of agriculture in water pollution and forecasting and control of agricultural pollution should therefore refer to the character of the basin from which this pollution flows to surface waters in hydrologic cycle as well as to the reaction of the basin to changeable meteorological or hydrologic conditions. Ninety nine point seven percent of Polish territory belongs to the Baltic Sea drainage area. The biggest part of this area belongs to the Vistula River basin (54.0%) and the Odra River basin (33.9%). The rest is created by small rivers of the Pomerania basins. Eight point seven percent of Polish territory has a hilly character and 91.3%
0925-8574/00/$ - see front matter © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 9 2 5 - 8 5 7 4 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 0 6 6 - X
430
M. Dzikiewicz / Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429–434
are typically lowlands. The area of Poland is 312 690 km2 and 59.8% of this area is arable land with light soils. This constitutes 40% of all agricultural land in the Baltic Sea drainage area. Poland has a population of 38.6 million and 38.1% of this population live in rural areas. 2. Nonpoint sources Typical nonpoint sources of pollution from agriculture are: 1. Leaching of nitrogen and phosphorus from arable land; 2. Leaching of nitrogen and phosphorus due to inappropriate storage of manure from animal production;
3. Atmospheric emissions of ammonia from manure due to inappropriate storage and field application; 4. Leaching of pesticides due to inappropriate application techniques and storage facilities; 5. Inadequate treatment of wastewater in rural areas. An increase in agricultural production demands the use of mineral fertilisers containing nitrogen and phosphorus. The highest usage of fertilisers in Poland occurred during 1975–1990. After 1990 the regression in application of fertilisers was observed as a result of the collapse of the communist economic system, although the mineral fertiliser application level was not high if related to the crop yields and soil fertility (Fig. 1). The dose
Fig. 1. Mineral fertiliser application in provinces in 1995.
M. Dzikiewicz / Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429–434
Fig. 2. Mineral fertiliser application in recent years
of mineral fertilisers in Poland is diversified depending upon the regional specialisation and intensity of crop production, the farm structure and the state of development. Unfortunately there are no data available regarding the use of mineral fertiliser in river basins but only in administration regions (Fig. 2). At present, the main cause of water pollution in Poland is animal husbandry. In most of the farms, livestock are housed on straw and the majority of waste is in the form of solid manure. The basic aim is to remove the waste as cheaply as possible. In most cases, solid manure is simply stored on the ground behind the farm buildings. Animal production, expressed in so called big conversion units (djp, which is equivalent 500 kg animal weight) was 52 djp per 100 ha in 1994. This animal production yields an annual load of manure of 215.8 kg BOD5 ha − 1, 43.0 kg N ha − 1 and 6.8 kg P ha − 1. Unfortunately, improper systems of manure storage, handling and dosing result in large dispersions of organic and nutrient pollutants into the environment. The nitrogen surplus in agriculture is emitted to the atmosphere in the form of ammonia or nitrogen oxides, washed out to surface or ground waters in the form of nitrates and, in smaller amounts, as ammonia ion or dissolved organic nitrogen compounds. The phosphorus surpluses accumulated in the soil can be transported to the
431
surface waters with surface runoff or wind and water erosion. Mineral balances are influenced by the changes in fertiliser use, the supply of animal manure and the mineral absorption by crops. In Poland an estimation of nutrient surpluses is difficult because in the many small farms (55.3% of Polish farms are smaller than 5 ha) agricultural production only serves for food self-sufficiency of the farmer’s family. It is estimated that 35% of the nitrogen surplus is lost due to atmospheric emissions of ammonia. Atmospheric emissions of ammonia from agricultural sources cause strong acidity of rainwater as well as emissions of SO2 and NOx. It is estimated that emissions of ammonia decreased in Poland due to the decrease in use of mineral fertilisers and animal production after 1990. In 1993, atmospheric emissions of ammonia were estimated at 392 000 t NH3 a − 1. Of this, 59.6% was from animal manure, 20.7% from mineral fertiliser use and 9.4% from crop release (Sapek, 1996). Soil permeability and slope of agricultural areas have a large impact on scrubbing of nitrogen and phosphorus from these areas into surface waters. Data obtained from the Vistula basin confirm that nutrient outflow from the upper part of the basin (10.6 kg N ha − 1 year − 1) was higher than in the middle and lower parts (4.85 kg N ha − 1 year − 1), which is associated with great water erosion upon mountainous and piedmont areas and soil of low permeability. In 1993, BOD5, total nitrogen load and total phosphorus load discharged by rivers from Polish territory to the Baltic Sea, was 227 000, 247 000 and 12 200 t a − 1 respectively. Around 60% of total nitrogen and 35% of total phosphorus comes from agricultural nonpoint sources. The consumption of agricultural pesticides in Poland was always lower in comparison with the European Union countries, and in 1990 it fell significantly, due to the economic problems. But now the use of pesticides is growing again; in 1994 it was 0.4 kg ha − 1. The use of pesticides results in widespread environmental pollution of surface waters, groundwater, rainwater and air. Pesticides from the group of halogen organic insecticides such as DDT and its metabolites belong to the group of chemical compounds especially danger-
432
M. Dzikiewicz / Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429–434
ous to the water environment, due to their toxicity, stability and resistance to biological degradation. DDT was banned in 1973. Unfortunately, the average concentration level of DDT in the Vistula River in 1990 varied from 0.02 to 0.10 mg dm − 3 depending on the river section. Other less persistent pesticides with shorter decomposition times and no tendencies for bioaccumulation (carbonate and phosphor-organic insecticides), as well as certain herbicides (derivatives of chlorophenoxyacetic acid), were seldom found in the investigated waters and then mainly during the period of application. The concentrations of these compounds were in the range of 4.15 – 20.0 mg dm − 3 (Zelechowska and Ceglarski, 1991). According to statistical data, Poland has 2 041 400 farms in rural areas. The number of farms connected to water supply systems has increased rapidly in the last few years (Fig. 3). In 1995, it comprised 56% of all farms. However, the number of farms connected to wastewater treatment systems (3.7% of all farms) shows that the process of construction of such facilities in rural area has just started. The disproportion between connection to the water supply systems and sewage systems is clearly seen in the Fig. 3. Forty four percent of households are not equipped with flush toilets. There are privies still in use. Most of the farms have poorly designed and constructed cesspools or on-site treatment, which causes
groundwater and surface water pollution. Untreated wastewater and sewage from these systems are often trucked onto the fields, meadows, forests, ditches or impediments.
3. Activities, achievements and needs
3.1. Monitoring and data bases Water pollution at the most important river sections of Polish territory has been monitored since the year 1972 by the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management, Marine Department in Gdynia. The level of pesticides in surface waters (especially halogen organic insecticides) is also controlled within the framework of this monitoring programme. In the eighties, numerous investigations were carried out on the outflow of nutrients compounds from experimental agricultural basins (Dojlido et al., 1990; Erndt and Zeglin, 1990). In these areas there were no point sources of pollutants. They were typical for agricultural areas in different regions of Poland. Data from these fragmentary basins were collected. The characteristics of pollutants outflow in rivers to the Baltic Sea can be used as a base for the estimation of nutrients outflow from nonpoint sources. There is still a need for separate agricultural runoff monitoring programs for different
Fig. 3. Number of farms connected to waterline systems and sewage systems in Poland. Grey columns: farms connected to waterline systems, black columns: farms connected to sewage systems.
M. Dzikiewicz / Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429–434
rivers, as well as monitoring of runoff and ammonia losses on the farm level, in order to convince rural populations how dangerous nonpoint pollution is.
3.2. Education The education level of the farmers is very low. Two point six percent of farmers have a university education, 16.2% completed secondary education, 30% completed vocational schools, 43.9% elementary schools and 5.8% have less than an elementary education. The Ministry of Agriculture has Agricultural Extension Service Centres (ODR) in every administration region in Poland. These centres provide agricultural production service and organise training, seminars and demonstration projects for farmers. Weak organisation of these institutions causes their activities to be inadequate for the needs. Most of the farmers request the services free of charge. The advisors at the community level who work with the farmers, agricultural technical school teachers and agriculture departments’ activists are not always familiar with environmental friendly agricultural production technologies and ‘good agricultural practices’. Quite a lot of environmental courses, training, and meetings for rural inhabitants have been organised, which are necessary elements for the development and gradual expansion and strengthening of the base of support for wastewater treatment projects among the rural communities. For example, the Water Supply Foundation organised 162 training sessions for 4092 participants on building on-site wastewater treatment plants and 91 training sessions for 2086 participants on the construction of collective sewage treatment plants and sewage systems. There is a need for individual advisory programs for every willing farmer that would include: 1. Chemical analysis of fodder and soil as a basis for recommendations, 2. Annual planning of animal and plant production including feeding and fertilisation, 3. Nutrient balance of the farm, 4. Efficient use of pesticides and chemical spraying equipment,
433
5. Presentation of the suitable solutions of chemical storage facilities, manure storage facilities and domestic sewage treatment facilities, 6. Simplified demonstrations/trials on the farm focusing on fertilisation and efficient use of manure, 7. Field meetings with farmers.
3.3. Manure storage facilities There are no regulations and standards or even traditional design and construction rules for farm waste facility collection and storage. The legislative procedure is in a very early stage. There are some proposals of new regulations and standards that have not been approved. It is evident that investments in storage capacities and spreading technologies are necessary for a better use of manure and environmental protection on almost all farms. But there is an urgent need for a financial strategy on the national level to solve the problem of how these projects should be supported. At the moment there are few demonstration projects where such facilities have been constructed with the support of founding institutions for selected farmers. For example, 261 manure storage tanks have been built with 80% financial support from the PHARE Programme ‘Rural Infrastructure for Water Management’.
3.4. Wastewater treatment facilities Under the communist regime, sewage treatment issues in the rural environment went unnoticed by subsequent governments. Only after 1989, when systemic changes began, the newly elected local governments gradually became aware of the problem. However, due to underdevelopment of other rural infrastructure elements such as water supply, roads or telecommunications and the population’s low awareness and mental impoverishment over the recent years, the solution of the problem is still often put off to ‘some time in the future’. All wastewater treatment plants have to meet Polish effluent standards of 30 mg l − 1 for BOD, 50 mg l − 1 for suspended solids, 30 mg l − 1 for total nitrogen, and 5 mg l − 1 for total phosphorus for plants greater than 25 population equivalents. It
434
M. Dzikiewicz / Ecological Engineering 14 (2000) 429–434
is evident that these standards lead to high construction costs of the plants. On the other hand, the cost of construction of sewers is the largest in comparison with other infrastructure elements. In this area, the financial support institutions on the national level have been active since 1989. Even with such organised financial support, achievements are not clearly visible in Fig. 3. But the annual growth of farms connected to sewage systems in the last 4 years has varied from 63 to 100%. There is still a need to increase the rural population awareness and to create new funding possibilities when the old ones are finishing, in order to continue successfully this progress.
gress has been slow. However, the target has been reached mainly due to decreased use of fertilisers and decreased agricultural production caused by structural changes and economic difficulties. But evidenced in Fig. 1, economic recovery might again lead to an increase in the agricultural runoff. Therefore, the advisory and financial organisations need to be strengthened to include environmental awareness early in the modernisation process of Polish agriculture. Special efforts are needed to prevent the continuation of inappropriate farm waste storage and field application practices.
References
4. Conclusions An assessment of the various activities and programmes to limit or reduce the pollution in Poland indicates that significantly more progress has been made in the control of pollution from industrial and municipal point sources than in the control of pollution from diffuse sources, including agriculture. Polish agriculture remains a major anthropogenic source of nutrient input to the Baltic Sea. According to an assessment presented to the Helsinki Commission on national programmes to reduce nutrient outflow by 50%, pro-
.
Dojlido, J., Leszczynski, A., Wlodarczyk, E., 1990. Zanieczyszczenia obszarowe w zlewni rzeki Skierniewki. Materialy Seminaryjne 26, IMUZ, Falenty. In Polish. Erndt, E., Zeglin, M., 1990. Ladunki podstawowych skladniko´w nawozowych w Potoku Koscieliskim. Materialy Seminaryjne 26. IMUZ, Falenty. In Polish. Sapek, A., 1996. Udzial rolnictwa w zanieczyszczaniu wody skladnikami nawozowymi. Zeszyty Edukacyjne 1/96, IMUZ, Falenty, pp. 9 – 33 In Polish. Zelechowska, A., Ceglarski, R., 1991. Microorganic pollution of surface waters — Polish dilemma and world applied solutions. In: Proceedings of the Conference on Water Resources Management and Water Pollution Control, September 1991, Warsaw, pp. 217 – 243.