Armament loads in Lower Saxony (WMS Dienst)

From 1989 to 1997, under the auspices of the Ministry of the Environment of Lower Saxony, a systematic risk assessment of old armament loads was carried out on all known or added suspected areas. The risk potential of armament loads must be assessed particularly high, because the construction of the armaments industries and their operations were usually carried out under war conditions and production had in principle priority over measures to protect workers and the environment. Large-scale contamination was caused, for example, by airstrikes that damaged or destroyed the production facilities and caused by non-professional demilitarisation of the plants, with toxic production materials entering the environment uncontrolled. Whether there is a specific risk at the respective site and the extent of contamination must be proven by means of investigations. During the orientation and detailed investigations, armor-related environmental chemicals, explosive material and, in individual cases, chemical warfare materials were found. These caused some significant contamination of the soil and groundwater. 181 sites in Lower Saxony were classified as armament loads. An update by consultation with the competent soil protection authorities is carried out every 3 years. According to the NBodSchG § 10, the responsibility for (arms) contaminated sites lies with the districts and district-free cities, where the site-related assessments from the risk assessment of armament loads are available. The LBEG has an advisory role in relation to the technical questions of these authorities. Further and, if necessary, more up-to-date information can be requested from the responsible soil protection authority.