Purpose

Contaminated sediments in rivers, lakes, and harbors around the world result in diminished ecological health, degradation of environmental resources, economic losses, and, in rare cases, impacts on human health. Despite the ongoing interest in the cleanup of contaminated sediments in rivers and harbors, little progress has been made in reducing the number of contaminated sites worldwide. Proponents of a “circular economy” model assert that it can facilitate the cleanup of contaminated sediments through product and process design to eliminate waste of resources, to beneficially use (and reuse) products and materials, and to restore ecologies. This paper evaluates the application of circular economy models to practice in the treatment, removal, and processing of contaminated sediments found in waterways.

Materials and methods

No materials were used in this work. Methods consisted of literature research and review.

Results and discussion

Much of the difficulty in advancing the cause of contaminated sediment cleanup can be attributed to the high cost of cleanups and the difficulty in assigning financial responsibility for the cost. Simple schemes dependent on identifying polluters are fraught with underlying complexity. More elaborate approaches tied in with waterfront redevelopment show some promise but are yet to be applied routinely. New advances in the understanding of how sediments may, or may not, factor into the utility of circularity models pose new challenges and opportunities, with the potential to complement new funding paradigms.

Conclusion

The most promising possibilities for achieving circularity in sediment management lie in a kind of punctuated circularity, which requires individual, project-based beneficial use opportunities. However, these ideal situations are likely to remain rare for the foreseeable future, without advancements in technology and regulatory approaches, as well as development of market demand for the products made from contaminated sediments.

中文翻译：

---

河流和港口治理：“污染者付费”，替代金融和“循环经济”的希望

目的

世界各地的河流，湖泊和港口中受污染的沉积物导致生态健康状况下降，环境资源退化，经济损失，并在极少数情况下对人类健康造成影响。尽管人们一直对清除河流和港口中的污染沉积物感兴趣，但在减少全球受污染场所的数量方面进展甚微。支持“循环经济”模式的人断言，它可以通过产品和工艺设计来促进污染污染物的清除，以消除资源浪费，有益地使用（和再利用）产品和材料，并恢复生态。本文评估了循环经济模型在水道中发现的受污染沉积物的处理，去除和处理中的实践应用。

材料和方法

这项工作没有使用任何材料。方法包括文献研究和综述。

结果和讨论

推进污染沉积物清理原因的许多困难可归因于清理费用高昂，以及难以为此费用分配财务责任。依赖于识别污染者的简单方案充满了潜在的复杂性。与滨水区重建相关的更精细的方法显示出一些希望，但尚未常规应用。关于沉积物可能会或可能不会影响循环模型的认识的新进展带来了新的挑战和机遇，并有可能补充新的供资范式。

结论

在沉积物管理中实现循环的最有前途的可能性在于一种点滴式的循环，这种循环需要个体的，基于项目的有益使用机会。但是，在没有可预见的未来的情况下，如果没有技术和管理方法的进步，以及对受污染的沉积物制成的产品的市场需求的发展，这些理想情况可能仍然很少。