BS EN ISO 21268-2:2019

What is this ISO 21268‑2 - Chemical and ecotoxicological testing of soil about?

ISO 21268‑2 is the second part of the ISO 21268 multi-series on soil quality and discusses the chemical and ecotoxicological testing of soil. ISO 21268‑2 specifies a test providing information on leaching of soil and soil materials under the experimental conditions specified hereafter, and particularly at a liquid to solid ratio of 10 l/kg dry matter.

ISO 21268‑2 has been developed to measure the release of inorganic and organic substances from soil and soil-like material as well as to produce eluates for subsequent ecotoxicological testing. ISO 21268‑2 provides a test method that produces eluates, which can subsequently be characterized by physical, chemical, and ecotoxicological methods in accordance with existing standard methods. The test is not suitable for substances that are volatile under ambient conditions.

Note 1: ISO 21268‑2 does not address issues related to health and safety. It only determines the leaching properties as outlined.

Note 2: This procedure is not applicable to materials with a dry-matter-content ratio lower than 33 %.

Who is ISO 21268‑2 - Chemical and ecotoxicological testing of soil for?

ISO 21268‑2 on ‘chemical and ecotoxicological testing of soil’ is useful for:

• Ecologists and conservationists
• Soil testing laboratories
• Landowners
• Production units that release waste into waterbodies

Why should you use ISO 21268‑2 - Chemical and ecotoxicological testing of soil?

The release of soluble substances upon contact with water is regarded as the main mechanism of release, that results in a potential risk to the environment during the use or disposal of materials. The intent of these tests is to identify the leaching properties of materials. The complexity of the leaching process makes simplifications necessary.

ISO 21268‑2 provides a test that is mainly aimed at being used for routine and control purposes, and it cannot be used alone to describe all leaching properties of soil. Additional leaching tests are needed for that extended goal.

The test procedure described in ISO 21268‑2 belongs to compliance tests. ‘Compliance’ tests are used to determine whether the material complies with a specific behaviour or with specific reference values. These tests focus on key variables and leaching behaviour previously identified by basic characterization tests.

What’s changed since the last update?

BS EN ISO 21268‑2:2019 supersedes ISO/TS 21268‑2:2007, which is withdrawn. BS EN ISO 21268‑2:2019 includes some technical changes with respect to ISO/TS 21268‑2:2007.

These include:

• The maximum grain size has been changed to <2 mm as usual for soil
• 1 "General" and 12.2 "Validation results obtained for DIN 19529" have been added
• 3.6 "Special requirements for tests considering semi-volatile substances" has been added
• A new informative Annex C "Calculation of centrifugation duration depending on centrifugation speed and rotor dimensions" has been added
• References in Clause 2 and the Bibliography have been updated