If you are practically to buy, sell, or re-finance a property, or if you are applying for planning permission, you will compulsion to know if your estate is contaminated. The first stage in the process is making a site search.
The site search must be completed during the due diligence process, which is usually undertaken by a solicitor or conveyancer, who will check the details adjacent to a database. The search will list all recorded uses of the site and neighbouring areas (usually within 250 m of the property).
Approximately 5% of all UK site contaminated land consultants vent that the property is upon or near home bearing in mind used for industrial activities. If your site is upon or near an old industrial site, you will obsession a impure home assessment.
The phased retrieve to risk management used in the UK makes this a mysterious process. To guide you through the maze of regulation under is a simplified two-step process to pact parts of the legislation surrounding poisoned land.
Step 1: Check taking into account the Local Authority and mood Agency.
As the statutory regulators of contaminated home issues, the Local Authority and Environmental Agency's views upon the site are the most important. They are adept to determine if the property is satisfactory or if additional assessment is required. If the Local Authority has no concerns exceeding contamination upon your land, then you infatuation not agree to any extra action.
If there are concerns taking into consideration the site the Local Authority will be skillful to lead you on what to complete next. If the house is contaminated to the extent that it may be affecting groundwater or surface water, the setting Agency must be contacted as they correct the water atmosphere and they will furthermore pay for guidance.
Step 2: Risk Assessment
If the regulators cannot discount the contamination issues the adjacent step is to conduct a risk assessment as required below the Environmental auspices battle 1990. This step must be completed using a certified infected estate consultant or practitioner. The risk assessment process is not speaking into three phases.
In Phase 1 your consultant will interpret the information obtained from the site searches and other publicly easy to get to assistance such as geological and hydrological maps. They will furthermore conduct a site walkover to get an on-the-ground promise of the area. From this information they will fabricate a conceptual site model (CSM) and unqualified a qualitative risk assessment (QRA) in accordance next UK guidance. If the QRA demonstrates low risks then no undertakings are required. If the QRA indicates medium or high risks after that a Phase 2 contamination assessment is required.
The Phase 2 assessment involves physical sampling of the soil to avow the level of contaminants. These results are compared adjoining UK soil and groundwater thresholds (Generic Assessment Criteria or GAC) to determine if the land is tainted and the extent to which it poses a risk. If the site is contaminated, remediation will be required. This is Phase 3.
Your consultant will allow a Phase 3 remediation plan once the Local Authority and can oversee and tally upon the momentum of the scheme. They can along with manage the combined process on your behalf.
The relevant opinion documents for housing are DEFRA & character Agency (2004) Model dealings for the government of home Contamination and NHBC & CEIH (2008) counsel for the safe go forward of Housing upon estate Affected by Contamination.
