Contamination and Impact

Mines

Denmark has been affected by antipersonnel mines left from World War II. In 1944, the entire Skallingen Peninsula in Jutland on the Danish west coast was mined with antipersonnel and antitank mines.[1] One minefield was remaining on the peninsula. In 1945–1947, large parts of the minefield were cleared, but due to significant difficulties with the clearance and quality control (QC) of mainly dune and salt marsh areas, a part of the mined area had been fenced and left uncleared.[2]

The affected area of the Skallingen Peninsula, as of entry into force of the Mine Ban Treaty for Denmark on 1 March 1999, comprised a total of 1.86km², initially identified from German mine records as well as markings established by mine clearance teams in 1947. For operational purposes the suspected mined area was divided into three areas called 1, 2, and 3. The first two areas were cleared by contractors in 2006–2008, leaving Area 3 to be demined.[3]

Mine Action Program

The Ministry of Transport has been responsible for clearance activities on Skallingen. The project was organized under the Danish Coastal Authority, with the power to task and coordinate civil contractors and manage projects.[4]

Land Release

Compliance with Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty

Under Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty and in accordance with its second extension request, which was granted by the Tenth Meeting of States Parties in 2010, Denmark was required to destroy all antipersonnel mines in mined areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 1 July 2012.

In 2008, Denmark presented a first request for an extension of 22 months until 1 January 2011.[5] On 18 June 2010, Denmark submitted a second extension request, seeking an additional 18 months to enable it to complete mine clearance operations.[6] In December 2010, the Tenth Meeting of States Parties granted Denmark’s request for a second extension to its Article 5 deadline, until 1 July 2012.[7] In granting the request, it was noted at the meeting that Denmark had “complied with the commitments it had made, as recorded in the decisions of the Ninth Meeting of States Parties, to obtain clarity regarding the remaining challenge, produce a detailed plan and submit a second extension request.” It noted that this affirmed “the importance of a State Party, should it find itself in a situation similar to that of Denmark in 2008, requesting only the period of time necessary to assess relevant facts and develop a meaningful forward looking plan based on these facts.”[8]

In June 2011, Denmark stated that 310,000m² of area was still to be cleared from the World War II minefield on the Skallingen peninsula and again affirmed that the remaining area would be cleared by its July 2012 deadline or before. It noted, however, that clearing the dunes has been “challenging.” In May 2012, Denmark reported that although clearance would be complete by its deadline, QC measures would likely take several months beyond that.[9] On 5 July 2012, Denmark issued a public statement announcing completion of its Article 5 obligations.[10]

Quality management

Denmark developed standards for clearance on Skallingen based on the International Mine Action Standards (IMAS).[11]