The Jätkäsaari dumping site was an unofficial dumping ground in

Jätkäsaari Jätkäsaari (; ) is a peninsula and a Subdivisions of Helsinki#Neighbourhoods, quarter in Helsinki, the capital city of Finland. It is part to the Kampinmalmi district and Länsisatama neighbourhood. It was the site of the main container port in ...

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

during 1930–44. The site is now part of the West Harbour of Helsinki. The place was never an official dumping ground, and it is not known for certain who exactly used it. It was used at least by private persons and companies, but possibly also by the City of Helsinki Sanitation Service.

History

The construction of a harbour in this area began in 1913. The city wanted to expand the land area in the vicinity, and starting in the 1930s, it encouraged even its own residents to bring waste to Jätkäsaari so that more of the sea could be filled. The actual dumping site was located in Hietasaari, from the tip of the island towards the sea, but there were landfilling activities in other spots in the area as well. The location of this dumping site was a bit to the west of the current location of Verkkokauppa.com, beneath the asphalt field next to it. The waste taken to the site consisted of surplus land, waste from demolished buildings, vegetables gone bad, ashes, paper waste, garden waste and landfill soil. The waste was dumped into the sea, the bottom of which consisted of layers of

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...

, and the landfill extended in places to a depth of . Among the waste, there are also 4 to 6

barge A barge is typically a flat-bottomed boat, flat-bottomed vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. Original use was on inland waterways, while modern use is on both inland and ocean, marine water environments. The firs ...

s, with hulls long. The composition of the waste is not typical of landfill sites. In terms of the volume of traffic and goods, the harbour was the biggest one in Helsinki from the 1960s on, and it was expanded in the 1970s as well. Now, however, its freight functions have been moved to the Vuosaari Harbour.

Restoration and investigations

Most of the former dumping site is located to the south of the first areas to be restored. The planning of the restoration work of the former dumping site has begun, and a special environmental permit has been sought for the restoration work. Soil samples have been taken from 460 places with a total of 1360 samples having been obtained. The investigation of these samples has yielded more than 35,000 separate pieces of information. The topics that are most intensively researched are the concentrations of

heavy metals upright=1.2, Crystals of lead.html" ;"title="osmium, a heavy metal nearly twice as dense as lead">osmium, a heavy metal nearly twice as dense as lead Heavy metals is a controversial and ambiguous term for metallic elements with relatively h ...

, oil-based

hydrocarbon In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons are examples of group 14 hydrides. Hydrocarbons are generally colourless and Hydrophobe, hydrophobic; their odor is usually fain ...

polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon A Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) is any member of a class of organic compounds that is composed of multiple fused aromatic rings. Most are produced by the incomplete combustion of organic matter— by engine exhaust fumes, tobacco, incine ...

s, and in some places the occurrence of

asbestos Asbestos ( ) is a group of naturally occurring, Toxicity, toxic, carcinogenic and fibrous silicate minerals. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous Crystal habit, crystals, each fibre (particulate with length su ...

Groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and Pore space in soil, soil pore spaces and in the fractures of stratum, rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available fresh water in the world is groundwater. A unit ...

has been investigated from 15 observation and sample tubes and

landfill gas Landfill gas is a mix of different gases created by the action of microorganisms within a landfill as they decompose organic waste, including for example, food waste and paper waste. Landfill gas is approximately forty to sixty percent methane, ...

in 20 separate points. Attention is paid to the physical characteristics of the groundwater and to the concentration of metals, oil-based hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. A beach for swimmers has also been planned in the area. The

microbiological Microbiology () is the scientific study of microorganisms, those being of unicellular (single-celled), multicellular (consisting of complex cells), or acellular (lacking cells). Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virol ...

qualities of the water between the future beach and the former dump have also been studied. Samples of the

sediment Sediment is a solid material that is transported to a new location where it is deposited. It occurs naturally and, through the processes of weathering and erosion, is broken down and subsequently sediment transport, transported by the action of ...

s have been taken from 26 places. Physical qualities of the sediments have been studied, as well as the concentrations of heavy metals, oil-based hydrocarbons,

polychlorinated biphenyl Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are organochlorine compounds with the formula Carbon, C12Hydrogen, H10−''x''Chloride, Cl''x''; they were once widely used in the manufacture of carbonless copy paper, as heat transfer fluids, and as dielectri ...

s and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. It is known that metals have been found in the area in small quantities. It is also known that the dump has caused the contamination of the groundwater.

The former dumping site today

The contaminated soil and the waste have been sealed off by a layer of asphalt for a long time. With the exception of the passenger terminal, the whole West Harbour of Helsinki is turning into a residential neighbourhood. The exact site of the former dumping site has been found unfit for development, as the landfill extends deep into the bottom of the sea. Soil contaminated with inorganic substances can be left under the blocks to be built with certain restrictions. The soil must be restored in certain places, and the area that was filled with

municipal solid waste Municipal solid waste (MSW), commonly known as trash or garbage in the American English, United States and rubbish in British English, Britain, is a List of waste types, waste type consisting of everyday items that are discarded by the public. ...

(i.e. the dumping site) will be sealed off and secured at its current location, and a recreational and sports park will be constructed above it. The soil will be isolated from the plants so that the contaminants will not find their way to them. Certain areas in the park will be designated as the final disposal site of soil that is mildly polluted with inorganic compounds as a result of construction activities. Before the finishing touches are given to the sports park, insulation, gas collection and protective layers will be built on the site. On the edges of the landfill, it is also possible to substitute clean soil for polluted soil. A cross-section of the dumping site has been published in the city plan for the area, on page 48. From the diagram, one can find the depths and pollutants that were studied and their amounts in rough terms.

References

External links

The Jätkäsaari dumping site

Jätkäsaari. Osayleiskaava. Selostus. 2. uudistettu painos. — Jätkäsaari. Partial city plan. Description. 2nd edition, updated.

Kaatopaikkojen ympäristövaikutukset ja Helsingin entiset kaatopaikat. [‘Environmental effects of dumping grounds and the present situation of the former dumping grounds in Helsinki’] (Tanja Toivola’s Thesis for engineer's degree)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jatkasaari dumping site Former landfills in Helsinki Jätkäsaari