Studying groundwater pollution in the surroundings of a recultivated sewage disposal site in eastern Hungary

Abstract

The investigation of our research was done in Mikepércs, near to Debrecen, Eastern Hungary. The sewage system of the settlement was completed in 2010, previously the communal waste water had been transported to a nearby sewage disposal site, constructed in 1982 on sandy deposits without any technical isolation. In the surroundings of the disposal site we analysed the quality of groundwater in 2005 and 2010. In this paper we deal with the KOI_ps and the NH⁴⁺ pollution. We found that the concentrations exceeded the contamination limit values for several times. In the spring of 2011 the disposal site was recultivated, and ceased supplying sewage water, so an improvement has been expected in the quality of ground water. Continuing the research in November of 2011 we started sampling the same boreholes which were used in 2005 and 2010. Currently we have got fourteen month results. The positive effect of the recultivation is not unambiguous at the present time. There are some wells where we could detect the improvement of the water quality, while in the case of other wells the water quality has been deteriorating significantly, particularly near by the disposal site. We need additional examinations to see of the effects of the recultivation and detect the rate of the improvement of water quality.