Environmental pollution by mercury is a local problem in Poland and concerns mainly industrial sites. Foundry waste are usually characterized by low mercury content compared to other heavy metals. Spent foundry sands with low content of Hg are the main component of foundry waste. However, Hg may be present in foundry dust, which may also be landfilled. Due to Hg toxicity, even a minimal content may have a negative impact on biota. This study focuses on assessing the mercury content of landfilled foundry waste (LFW), to assess its toxicity. Currently tested waste is recovered and reused as a road aggregate. The results were compared with the mercury content of local soils as the reference level. Waste samples were taken from foundry landfill. The mercury content, fractional composition, organic matter (OM) and total organic carbon content, pH and elementary composition of waste were analysed. It was found that the mercury content in LFW was very low, at the level of natural content in soils and did not pose a threat to the environment. The statistical analysis shows that mercury was not associated with OM of the waste, in contrast to soils, probably due to different types of OM in both materials.

中文翻译：

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评估填埋和回收的铸造废料中的汞污染-案例研究

汞对环境的污染是波兰的一个本地问题，主要涉及工业场所。与其他重金属相比，铸造废料通常具有低汞含量的特点。汞含量低的废铸造砂是铸造废料的主要成分。但是，汞可能存在于铸造厂的粉尘中，也可能被掩埋。由于汞的毒性，即使含量很少也可能对生物群产生负面影响。这项研究的重点是评估填埋的铸造废料（LFW）中的汞含量，以评估其毒性。当前已测试的废物被回收并作为公路骨料再利用。将结果与当地土壤的汞含量作参考水平进行比较。废物样本来自铸造厂的垃圾填埋场。汞含量，组成成分，有机物（OM）和总有机碳含量，分析废物的pH值和元素组成。结果发现，LFW中的汞含量非常低，处于土壤中的自然含量水平，对环境没有构成威胁。统计分析表明，与土壤相比，汞与废物的有机质无关，这可能是由于两种材料中有机质的类型不同所致。