Amsterdam Airport Schiphol has started operations at a new facility designed to treat PFAS-contaminated soil accumulated during construction and infrastructure projects at the airport.
The first batch of contaminated soil was successfully treated this summer, marking the start of a programme that will process more than 200,000 tonnes of soil currently stored at Schiphol.
Around 160,000 tonnes are expected to be suitable for reuse after treatment, allowing the airport to return material previously considered waste to future construction and infrastructure projects.
PFAS contamination linked to historic firefighting foam use
PFAS contamination has complicated construction and soil management projects across the Netherlands for several years.
At Schiphol, contaminated soil is found in several locations, including areas where firefighting foams containing PFAS were historically used during training exercises and emergency responses.
Schiphol’s Fire Service no longer uses firefighting foam containing PFAS.
Until a long-term treatment solution became available, much of the excavated soil had been stored at the airport. The new facility allows Schiphol to process this material on site and recover a significant proportion for reuse.
How Schiphol removes PFAS from contaminated soil
The treatment process uses the solubility of PFAS in water to separate the chemicals from the soil. The resulting contaminated water then undergoes a purification process to remove the PFAS.
Schiphol expects approximately 160,000 tonnes of treated soil to meet the requirements for reuse.
A smaller residual stream that continues to contain PFAS concentrations above permitted reuse levels will be transferred to an authorised processor.
The approach reduces the amount of material that needs to be discarded while limiting the need for new raw materials in future projects.
“The soil treatment facility is up and running; the first batch of soil has been remediated and is ready for reuse,” said Bart Smolders, Chief Infrastructure Officer at Royal Schiphol Group.
He added that the project demonstrates how soil stored for years because of PFAS contamination can be treated and largely returned to productive use.
More than 200,000 tonnes to be treated
The facility was developed in collaboration with DEME, a specialist in soil cleaning and remediation.
Operations are supervised by the North Sea Canal Area Environmental Service (Omgevingsdienst Noordzeekanaalgebied).
Over the coming years, Schiphol plans to process more than 200,000 tonnes of PFAS-contaminated soil already stored at the airport, making the facility part of its broader effort to reuse materials generated by major airport infrastructure works.
