Regional risk assessment part I: Prioritization of potentially contaminated sites
Abstract
Soil contamination remains a critical barrier to endurable land use and environmental health worldwide. A stepwise and risk-based approach to identify, assess, and manage potentially contaminated sites across complex land uses is presented. Unlike traditional site-specific risk assessments, which are often limited to detailed studies of individual locations, this large-scale approach (known as regional risk assessment) integrates diverse data sources—historical or current data on anthropogenic activities—with pathway relevance information and receptor vulnerability to support prioritization when dealing with a very large number of sites. The methodology is implemented within a global information systems-based framework and integrates spatial data on hazards, pathways, and receptors to produce regional-scale risk maps. The output provides a relative ranking of potentially contaminated sites based on estimated risk levels, supporting the prioritization of sites requiring further site-specific investigation or remediation. Applied to the metropolitan area of Toulouse, the framework demonstrates its applicability across urban and peri-urban landscapes. This methodology responds to emerging regulatory requirements, such as the Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive, and offers practical support to strategic planning efforts aligned with EU policy initiatives. By enabling more efficient and risk-based site management, the framework contributes to the protection of human health and land resources.
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BibTeX
@article{minolfi2026regional,
title = {{Regional risk assessment part I: Prioritization of potentially contaminated sites}},
author = {Giulia Minolfi and Fabio Rosada and Elisa Giubilato and Alex Zabeo and Stéphane Belbeze and Virginie Derycke and Timo Tarvainen and Isadora Antoniano Villalobos and Elena Semenzin and Lisa Pizzol},
journal = {Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.1093/inteam/vjag123/8747159},
url = {https://brgm.hal.science/hal-05845295v1},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Regional risk assessment part I: Prioritization of potentially contaminated sites
AU - Giulia Minolfi
AU - Fabio Rosada
AU - Elisa Giubilato
AU - Alex Zabeo
AU - Stéphane Belbeze
AU - Virginie Derycke
AU - Timo Tarvainen
AU - Isadora Antoniano Villalobos
AU - Elena Semenzin
AU - Lisa Pizzol
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/29
JO - Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management
DO - 10.1093/inteam/vjag123/8747159
UR - https://brgm.hal.science/hal-05845295v1
AB - Soil contamination remains a critical barrier to endurable land use and environmental health worldwide. A stepwise and risk-based approach to identify, assess, and manage potentially contaminated sites across complex land uses is presented. Unlike traditional site-specific risk assessments, which are often limited to detailed studies of individual locations, this large-scale approach (known as regional risk assessment) integrates diverse data sources—historical or current data on anthropogenic activities—with pathway relevance information and receptor vulnerability to support prioritization when dealing with a very large number of sites. The methodology is implemented within a global information systems-based framework and integrates spatial data on hazards, pathways, and receptors to produce regional-scale risk maps. The output provides a relative ranking of potentially contaminated sites based on estimated risk levels, supporting the prioritization of sites requiring further site-specific investigation or remediation. Applied to the metropolitan area of Toulouse, the framework demonstrates its applicability across urban and peri-urban landscapes. This methodology responds to emerging regulatory requirements, such as the Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive, and offers practical support to strategic planning efforts aligned with EU policy initiatives. By enabling more efficient and risk-based site management, the framework contributes to the protection of human health and land resources.
SN - 1551-3777
SN - 1551-3793
ER -