Soil and Groundwater

Like many other long-standing chemical companies, WACKER has some on-site soil contamination.

To remediate this legacy of contamination, WACKER has been extracting air from the soil at the Burghausen site since 1989. This predominantly removes volatile halogenated hydrocarbons from the soil, which are then disposed of properly.

In addition, since 2003 we have been using a groundwater stripping plant to treat an area of localized groundwater contamination east of the Burghausen site, reducing the concentration of harmful substances there to a tenth of the original concentration. In order to reduce the discharge of hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD) into the tailrace at the Burghausen site, we are continuing groundwater treatment of the site’s contaminated areas.

The results of our annual fish contaminant survey at Burghausen indicate that fish from the Salzach river continued to be quite safe to eat in the year under review. The fish were monitored by BNGF GmbH – specialists in nature conservation, waterways and fisheries.

There is likewise some groundwater contamination at our Nünchritz site, which predates WACKER’s takeover of the site. Removal was already underway as a part of short-term projects. Pilot measures involved examining purification methods and commencing groundwater treatment. This was followed by an investigation aimed at devising a strategy for further remediation measures; we continued this investigation during the current period under review. In this and in flood protection at the Nünchritz site, we are collaborating closely with local authorities.