Timo Tarvainen

• Ph.D.
• Senior Researcher at Geological Survey of Finland

Newsletter of EU Horizon project ISLANDR 'Information-Based Strategies for Land Remediation', 2023-2026.

https://tupa.gtk.fi/julkaisu/bulletin/bt_418.pdf This volume is a revision of stratigraphic procedures and nomenclature in Finland. The articles provide practical guidance on the appropriate use of geological unit terminology in the Fennoscandian Shield area and Finnish perspectives on stratigraphy as a science. The first article by Kohonen et al....

This report, Deliverable 3.1, is produced as part of the Horizon Europe programme’s ISLANDR project (see Box 1.1). It is a consultation document about “Sustainable and Risk Based Land Management (SRBLM)", and how this concept will be advanced by the ISLANDR project. It is for sharing with key stakeholders inside and outside the project to both info...

Acid sulfate soils can cause severe environmental harm due to a low pH and mobilization of harmful elements. Acid sulfate soil material is formed when oxidation of sulfide minerals causes a drop in pH to <4.0 for mineral oil materials and <3.0 for organic soil materials or when the soil materials contain enough sulfide to potentially do so. Two dre...

Chronic exposure to arsenic (As) through food crops is a major health issue. Our AgriAs project [1] evaluated soil-water-crop transfer mechanisms and proposed remediation options. Two sites, one polluted by a former factory of WWI ammunition destruction (Verdun, France), and another contaminated by historical mining activities (Freiberg, Germany) w...

The present Manual contains comprehensive instructions for selecting random sample sites (Chapter 2) and for collecting each sample medium (Chapters 3.1 to 3.5). Further, it includes methods for sample preparation and storage (Chapter 4), development of reference materials (Chapter 5), geoanalytical methods (Chapter 6), quality control procedures (...

Production of coherent and quantitative geochemical maps to portray the chemical composition of the world’s land surface is necessary, and requires the establishment of a suitable multi-media sample reference framework. One may ask the question: How can such a geochemical reference framework of multi-media samples be developed?

Agricultural soil (Ap-horizon, 0–20 cm) samples were collected from 33 European countries as part of the GEMAS (GEochemical Mapping of Agricultural and grazing land Soil) soilmapping project. The Mg data derived from total concentrations (XRF) and two acid digestion methods, aqua regia (AR) and Mobile Metal Ion (MMI®), were used to provide an overv...

The project Geochemical Mapping of Agricultural and grazing land Soil (GEMAS) was carried out in 33 European countries (5.6 million km2) with an average sampling density of 1 site per 2500 km2. The main objective was to assess the chemical quality of productive soils. All collected soil samples were prepared in the same laboratory, and subsequently...

The project Geochemical Mapping of Agricultural and grazing land Soil (GEMAS) was carried out in 33 European countries (5.6 million km2) with an average sampling density of 1 site per 2500 km2. The main objective was to assess the chemical quality of productive soils. All collected soil samples were prepared in the same laboratory, and subsequently...

Chronic exposure to arsenic may be detrimental to health. We investigated the behaviour, remediation and risk management of arsenic in Freiberg, Germany, characterized by past mining activities, and near Verdun in France, where World War I ammunition was destroyed. The main results included: (1) pot experiments using a biologically synthesized adso...

Agricultural soil (Ap-horizon, 0–20 cm) samples were collected from 33 European countries as part of the GEMAS (GEochemical Mapping of Agricultural and grazing land Soil) soilmapping project. The Mg data derived from total concentrations (XRF) and two acid digestion methods, aqua regia (AR) and Mobile Metal Ion (MMI® ), were used to provide an over...

Soil geochemical baselines of potentially toxic elements were studied in two cities: Tampere in Finland and Taltal in Chile. Soil samples were sieved to the <2 mm grain-size fraction and the concentrations of As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Sb, V and Zn were measured after aqua regia extraction. The upper limit of baseline variation was defined for...

Arsenic concentrations in soil and water were examined at the European level via a literature review and data inventory in the first phase of the AgriAs European Water JPI project. Arsenic in soil can be derived from both natural and anthropogenic sources. At the European scale, the distribution of arsenic in agricultural topsoil can mostly be expl...

The Layman's Report of the AgriAs project contains main results of a Water JPI project, cofunded by EU and national research organizations. AgriAs = 'Evaluation and Management of Arsenic Contamination in Agricultural Soil and Water' 1.4.2017 - 31.12.2019.

The demand for ‘high-tech’ element resources (e.g., rare earth elements, lithium, platinum group elements) has increased with their continued consumption in developed countries and the emergence of developing economies. To provide a sound knowledge base for future generations, it is necessary to identify the spatial distribution of critical element...

Urban soil geochemical mapping was carried out, using the same sampling and analytical protocol, in seven Finnish towns in 2012–2017. All samples were taken from urban topsoil (0–10 cm), dried at <40 °C and sieved to <2 mm grain size. Aqua regia-extractable concentrations of 24 elements and total carbon content were assessed in this statistical stu...

Agricultural soil (Ap-horizon, 0–20 cm) samples were collected in Europe (33 countries, 5.6 million km2) as part of the GEMAS (GEochemical Mapping of Agricultural and grazing land Soil) soil-mapping project. The GEMAS survey area includes diverse groups of soil parent materials with varying geological history, a wide range of climate zones, and la...

Arsenic is a toxic and carcinogenic substance. According to WHO, the greatest threat to public health from arsenic originates from contaminated groundwater. Food is another notable pathway for As exposure in humans. There are numerous arsenic-related publications and reports, but many of them focus on arsenic problems in South-East Asia or are limi...

A new GIS based human health risk assessment methodology developed for soil contamination has been applied to a selected area located in Campania region (Italy). The area is about 220 km² wide and it is located between the provincial capital cities of Avellino and Salerno; it was selected since most of it already resulted affected by an high risk l...

This study demonstrates the use of digital image processing for the spatial pattern recognition and characterisation of Ni concentrations in topsoil in Europe. Moving average smoothing was applied to the TIN-interpolated grid model to suppress small irregularities. Digital image processing was applied then to the grid. Several NE-SW, E-W and NW-SE...

The GEMAS (geochemical mapping of agricultural soil) project collected 2108 Ap horizon soil samples from regularly ploughed fields in 33 European countries, covering 5.6 million km2. The <2 mm fraction of these samples was analysed for 53 elements by ICP-MS and ICP-AES, following a HNO3/HCl/H2O (modified aqua regia) digestion. Results are used here...

Kauppila, P. M. & Tarvainen, T. (eds) 2018. Improving the environmental properties, utilisation potential and long-term prediction of mining wastes. Geological Survey of Finland, Bulletin 408, 108 pages, 50 figures and 17 tables. One of the key issues in modern mining is the sustainable management of extractive wastes. The key challenges related t...

Urban soil geochemical mapping was carried out using the same sampling and analytical protocols in two Nordic towns: Hämeenlinna in Finland and Karlstad in Sweden. Aqua regia extractable concentrations of 53 elements determined in urban topsoil (0–10 cm) were compared statistically, including cluster and factor analysis, and spatially for selected...

An ‘Atlas’ is a collection of maps usually published in a book form. A ‘Geochemical Atlas’ is a thematic special purpose atlas with maps describing the geographical distribution of chemical elements and other physico-chemical parameters in different natural sample media, such as stream sediment, overbank or floodplain sediment, stream water, ground...

Humus has been recognized as one of the best sampling media for mapping regional environmental contamination. However, because of the complex and incompletely understood geochemistry of humus, reflecting to differing extents the underlying geology, the biospheric activity, and airborne deposition, its application is still not widespread.

Risk assessment of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) requires to separate their geogenic soil enrichment and anthropogenic pollution since they are two processes acting together and causing elevated concentrations of PTEs in urban topsoil. The study was aimed to analyse and compare the concentrations of various potentially harmful geochemical eleme...

Over 4000 agricultural and grazing land soil samples were collected for the “Geochemical Mapping of Agricultural and Grazing Land Soil of Europe” (GEMAS) project carried out by the EuroGeoSurveys Geochemistry Expert Group. The samples were collected in 33 European countries, covering 5.6 million km2 at a density of 1 sample site per 2500 km2. All s...

Environmental quality is fundamental for the wellbeing of human life. Environmental risk assessment and analysis have a crucial role in the evaluation of human health risk, especially in intensive urbanized and industrialized areas, such as the Campania region (Italy). In Italy, after the Legislative Decree 152/2006, the environmental risk assessme...

Agricultural soil (Ap-horizon, 0–20 cm) and grazing land soil (Gr-horizon, 0–10 cm) samples were collected from a large part of Europe (33 countries, 5.6 million km2) as part of the GEMAS (GEochemical Mapping of Agricultural and grazing land Soil) soil mapping project. GEMAS soil data have been used to provide a general view of element mobility and...

Mapping arsenic (As) concentration of urban soils and defining the upper limit of regional geochemical baseline variation are preliminary steps in assessing As contamination and deciding possible remediation needs. The surface urban soils of two Finnish cities (Tampere and Lahti) were studied with the aim of modelling the spatial variability of As...

The Geological Survey of Finland (GTK) has carried out several geochemical soil baseline mapping projects in the natural areas as well as in the urban areas in Finland (e.g. Tarvainen et al. 2006, Hatakka et al. 2010 and Tarvainen et al. 2013). Applicability of Innov-X Systems' Olympus Delta 6000 Premium portable XRF analyzer (pXRF) to the geochemi...

Concern over arsenic (As)-rich drinking water has gained worldwide attention since the 1990s, when the prob- lem was discovered in West Bengal in India and in Bangladesh. Since then, authorities and research institutes have focused on risk assessment and management for As in Finland. Nationwide geochemical mapping projects determined background lev...

In the framework of the GEMAS project, 2211 samples of agricultural soil (Ap, 0-20 cm, regularly ploughed fields), and 2118 samples from land under permanent grass cover (Gr, 0-10 cm, grazing land soil) were collected across almost the whole European continent, at a density of 1 sample site/2500 km2, in accordance with a common sampling protocol....

The ClimUrban project enhances the capacity of cities and municipalities to decrease the discharge of hazardous substances from urban areas to the Baltic Sea. Floods affect sources of hazardous substances such as man-made fillings and contaminated soils and lead to their discharge. Large cities in the BSR are growing both in size and density. The c...

Partial least squares regression (PLSR) models, using mid-infrared (MIR) diffuse reflectance Fourier transformed (DRIFT) spectra, were used to predict distribution coefficient (Kd) values for selected added soluble metal cations (Ag+, Co2+, Cu2+, Mn2+, Ni2+, Pb2+, Sn4+, and Zn2+) in 4813 soils of the Geochemical Mapping of Agricultural Soils (GEMAS...

Two thousand one hundred and eight agricultural soils (0–20 cm depth) collected at a density of one sample per 2500 km2 under the auspices of the Geochemical Mapping of Agricultural Soils (GEMAS) project over most of the European continent have been analysed using the Mobile Metal Ion (MMI®) partial extraction technique with ICP-MS finish. For a nu...

Partial least squares regression (PLSR) models, using mid-infrared (MIR) diffuse reflectance Fourier-transformed (DRIFT) spectra, were used to predict distribution coefficient (Kd) values for selected added soluble metal cations (Agþ, Co2þ, Cu2þ, Mn2þ, Ni2þ, Pb2þ, Sn4þ, and Zn2þ) in 4813 soils of the Geochemical Mapping of Agricultural Soils (GEMAS...

Indium is a very rare element, which is usually not reported in geochemical data sets. It is classified as a critical metal, with important applications in the electronics industry, especially in the production of solar panels and liquid-crystal displays (LCDs). Over 4000 samples of agricultural and grazing land soil have been collected for the “Ge...

During 2008 the GEochemical Mapping of Agricultural Soils (GEMAS) project collected 2108 agricultural (ploughed soil, Ap horizon, 0–20 cm) and 2023 grazing land soil samples (Gr, 0–10 cm) evenly spread over 33 European countries and covering an area of 5.6 million km2. The pH of all samples was determined by one single laboratory applying a 0.01 M...

Highlights: 1) ASROCKS project developed the guidelines for sustainable aggregate production and construction in arsenic-rich areas. 2) The guidelines can be applied in other countries with problems with arsenic. Arsenic is a carcinogenic substance especially in drinking water. 3) ASROCKS was the first project in the world to investigate and deve...

Summary in English: Guidelines for the exploitation of aggregate resources were compiled in the ASROCKS project “Guidelines for Sustainable Exploitation of Aggregate Resources in Areas with Elevated Arsenic Concentrations” during 2011–2014. The project was mainly funded by the EU’s Life+ Environment Policy and Governance programme and the particip...

Hafnium (Hf) and zirconium (Zr) concentrations measured in over 4100 agricultural soil samples from Europe were assessed with the focus on their relationship to the distribution of aeolian deposits, such as loess and coversands. Comparison of extractable (aqua regia; ICP-MS) and total (XRFS) concentrations shows that only 1.0 to 1.7% of the total H...

Purpose Concern about the environmental impact of agriculture caused by intensification is growing as large amounts of nutrients and contaminants are introduced into the environment. The aim of this paper is to identify the geogenic and agricultural controls on the elemental composition of European, grazing and agricultural soils. Materials and me...

The aim of this study was to develop partial least squares (PLS) models to predict the concentrations of 45 elements in soils extracted by the aqua regia (AR) method using diffuse reflectance Fourier Transform mid-infrared (MIR; 4000–500 cm−1) spectroscopy. A total of 4130 soils from the GEMAS European soil sampling program (geochemical mapping of...

Ce, La and Y from agricultural (Ap) and grazing land (Gr) soils of Europe have been investigated using new geochemical data produced by the GEMAS (Geochemical mapping of agricultural and grazing land soils) project. Interpolated maps showing Ce, La, and Y distributions in Ap and Gr were generated using ArcView and classified with the concentration...

Extended abstract, pages 1799-1801.

Agricultural (Ap, A p-horizon, 0–20 cm) and grazing land soil samples (Gr, 0–10 cm) were collected from a large part of Europe (33 countries, 5.6 million km 2) at an average density of 1 sample site/2500 km 2. The resulting more than 2 Â 2000 soil samples were air dried, sieved to <2 mm and analysed for their Hg concentrations following an aqua reg...

Preliminary geochemical mapping was carried out within urban areas in Tampere Central Region, Finland, to gain a better understanding of element concentrations in urban soil and to provide information on baselines in soil within urban centres for soil contamination assessment purposes. The soil samples were taken from central city parks, day-care c...

Establishment of risk management principles for the production and use of aggregates with elevated natural As content.. 12th International UFZ-Deltares Conference on Groundwater-Soil-Systems and Water Resource Management, 16.-19.4.2013 Barcelona. 2013 AquaConSoil Proceedings. Session ThS E1.

The aim of this study was to develop partial least-squares (PLS) regression models using diffuse reflectance Fourier transform mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy for the prediction of the concentration of elements in soil determined by X-ray fluorescence (XRF). A total of 4130 soils from the GEMAS European soil sampling program (geochemical mapping of...

Arsenic concentrations are reported for the <2 mm fraction of ca. 2200 soil samples each from agricultural (Ap horizon, 0–20 cm) and grazing land (Gr, 0–10 cm), covering western Europe at a sample density of 1 site/2500 km2. Median As concentrations in an aqua regia extraction determined by inductively coupled plasma emission mass spectrometer (ICP...

The map and database series contains evaluation of environmental risks caused by natural geochemical background levels in bedrock and soil. In Finnish and Swedish: Geokemiallinen ympäristövaikutuskartta = Geokemisk miljökonsekvens-karta 1 : 1 000 000: Arseeni moreenissa = Arsenik i morän ISBN: 978-952-217-240-2

•Published in Finnish and Swedish: Geokemiallinen ympäristövaikutuskartta = Geokemisk miljökonsekvens-karta : Mustaliuskeet pohjavesialueilla = Svartskiffer i grundvattenområden ISBN:978-952-217-235-8

In Finnish and Swedish: Geokemiallinen ympäristövaikutuskartta = Geokemisk miljökonsekvens-karta 1 : 1 000 000: Fluoridi pohjavedessä = Fluorid i grundvatten ISBN:978-952-217-236-5

In Finnish and Swedish: Geokemiallinen ympäristövaikutuskartta = Geokemisk miljökonsekvens-karta 1 : 1 000 000: Radon pohjavedessä = Radon i grundvatten ISBN:978-952-217-237-2

In Finnish and Swedish: Geokemiallinen ympäristövaikutuskartta = Geokemisk miljökonsekvens-karta 1 : 1 000 000: Nikkeli moreenissa = Nickel i morän.

In Finnish and Swedish: Geokemiallinen ympäristövaikutuskartta = Geokemisk miljökonsekvens-karta 1 : 1 000 000: Nikkeli purovesissä = Nickel i bäckvatten

This report summarizes the results of seven soil geochemical baseline mapping projects carried out in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area by the cities of Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa and the Geological Survey of Finland during 1996-2011. Samples were taken of humus and minerogenic soils from natural soils around urban centres, within urban areas and from...

The Geochemical Mapping of Agricultural and Grazing Land Soil (GEMAS) project provides soil geochemical data for over 50 elements at a density of 1 sample per 2500 km2 across the European continent. Median baseline total concentrations of niobium (Nb) determined by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry in the <2 mm fraction of 2108 ploughed agricultural...

Applied geochemistry and environmental sciences invariably deal with compositional data. Classically, the original or log-transformed absolute element concentrations are studied. However, compositional data do not vary independently, and a concentration based approach to data analysis can lead to faulty conclusions. For this reason a better statist...

Cited By (since 1996): 2, Export Date: 2 October 2012, Source: Scopus

Analytical data for 10 major oxides (Al2O3, CaO, Fe2O3, K2O, MgO, MnO, Na2O, P2O5, SiO2 and TiO2), 16 total trace elements (As, Ba, Ce, Co, Cr, Ga, Nb, Ni, Pb, Rb, Sr, Th, V, Y, Zn and Zr), 14 aqua regia extracted elements (Ag, As, Bi, Cd, Ce, Co, Cs, Cu, Fe, La, Li, Mn, Mo and Pb), Loss On Ignition (LOI) and pH from 3526 soil samples from two cont...

Applied geochemistry and environmental sciences invariably deal with compositional data. Classically, the original or log-transformed absolute element concentrations are studied. However, compositional data do not vary independently, and a concentration based approach to data analysis can lead to faulty conclusions. For this reason a better statist...

To obtain a fi rst impression of the geochemistry and quality of European ground water bottled mineral water was used as a sampling medium. In total, 1,785 bottled waters were purchased from supermarkets of 40 European countries, representing 1,247 wells/drill holes/springs at 884 locations. All bottled waters were analysed for 72 parameters at the...

A first impression of the geochemistry and quality of European ground water was obtained by using bottled mineral water as a sampling medium. In total, 1785 bottled waters were purchased from supermarkets of forty European countries, representing 1247 wells/drill holes/springs at 884 locations. All bottled waters were analysed for 72 parameters at...