Contaminated Sites Investigation: The Environmental Case Study

The repositories containing unwanted pesticides are a serious geoenvironmental problem in Poland. Foundation of special objects, later called “tombs”, has began in 1965, when in the regions of southern Poland a relatively small amount of unwanted pesticides as well as their packages were buried directly in the ground. These places were commonly located nearby the stores of the agricultural co-operatives. Because the amount of unwanted pesticides has been successively increasing, in 1971 a ­special “Instruction”, which stated precisely the type of constructions in which such products should be stored, was prepared. The recommended repository included up to several tens of concrete wells with a diameter 1–2 m and 3–4 m deep. Moreover, various military fortifications were used as repositories, from the bunkers of the Second World War to the Prussian and Russian forts of nineteenth century.