What is contaminated land?
Contaminated land is land where substances in or under land make it actually or potentially hazardous to people’s health, or hazardous to the environment.
What is the legal definition of contaminated land?
Contaminated land is defined by Part 2A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 as:
“land which appears to the local authority in whose area it is situated to be in such a condition, by reason of substances in, on or under the land, that;
- significant harm is being caused or there is a significant possibility of such harm being caused; or
- pollution of controlled waters is being, or is likely to be, caused."
What is the Council doing about contaminated land?
When a site is to be redeveloped, the previous use of the land is investigated using historical maps and information from trade directories.
If the site has a history of activities which may have contaminated the land, the planning process can be used where appropriate to require the developer to carry out an investigation and where necessary clean-up the land to a standard that makes it suitable for its intended use.
Please seek advice from our planning service before making an application.
What information do you have about contaminated land?
We are often asked if there is any contaminated land at a property or site. In some cases, we may have details of remediation that was completed when a site was redeveloped. However, for many properties, the only information we have is the past use of the land.
Although a property may be situated on land with a past industrial use, this does not necessarily mean the property is on contaminated land, but instead means that there is the potential for contamination to be present.
Can you search records and provide me with information about a property?
If you would like us to search our records for information and provide a written response a charge is likely to apply, more information on requesting such information is available on our Environmental Information Regulations page.
Radon
Radon gas occurs naturally through uranium in rocks, soil, bricks and concrete. It can affect our health if it builds up in rooms at ground level or below and you are exposed to it for a long time.
The level of radon gas is dependent on the geology of where you live. UK radon can advise on and provide kits to monitor radon in our homes and buildings.