Some regions in the Netherlands have a large problem with soil stability. Indeed, the soil is sinking due to the load of streets, etc. This is nicely demonstrated in a movie in Dutch. It is shown that in some cases the streets have sinked so much that people cannot enter anymore there garage with their cars. In order to reinstall the original height of the streets, ordinary soil is not used because this increaes even more the sinking behaviour. Several light weight materials are tested on mechanical stability and leaching out.

The Netherlands have their special method to put a limit on the leaching out of materials in contact with the soil. Where other countries put a limit in relation to the health risk with several molecules, the Netherlands have as rule that the actual composition of the soil should not change more than a certain value in 100 years due to leaching out. In this way, they obtained a much more severe limit on Sb (Antimony) than on As (Arsenic), while the last one is much more dangerous for the health. As a consequence, several European cellular glass producers failed for the test and for example, EPS was used as filling material, which is questionable.

However, GLAPOR celluar glass succeeded as the first supplier to pass all the test by adapting the recipe and other critical issues and obtained the very difficult to obtain KIWA certificate. It is expected that in the next years one million cubic meter “Holland” gravel will leave Mitterteich for the Netherlands. This is nicely demonstrated in another movie, partially in Dutch.