Geo-environmental and resource protection

????? Source: BGR

The incidence and distribution of substances in the geosphere; deep underground, in soil, water, vegetation and the atmosphere, can have natural or man-made causes. One thus differentiates between naturally occurring (geogenic) substances and flows and those caused by human activities (anthropogenic). The substances released by humans are the subject of environmental policies and laws. In order to enable the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources to advise legislators and industry, basic data are collected which make it possible to differentiate between natural materials and those released by humans, and which also describe their spatial and temporal distribution.

In the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources, modern procedures are either used or developed further, which enable inorganic and organic pollutants to be determined in various geological materials, such as rocks, ores, sediments, soils and water.

The data obtained serve to determine the natural concentrations and background values for specific regions. The depiction of the spatial distribution of materials in geochemical maps provides information on regional pollution and allows conclusions to be drawn about its origin.

Sustainable use of raw materials by man must take into consideration the concerns of environmental and resource protection. The release of harmful substances into the environment must be avoided or kept as low as possible. In the case of existing contaminated sites, tailings and mining residues, the dynamic behaviour of harmful substances is ascertained in order, subsequently, to be able to take sensible measures to protect the ecosystem.