Refuse & Recycling collections operating as normal on Bank Holiday Monday and Tuesday (27th and 28th May). Council Offices are CLOSED Monday and Tuesday. Leisure Centres CLOSED Monday only.
Contaminated Land
What do we do?
The Council is obliged, under the 1995 Environment Act, to investigate its area and identify areas of contaminated land. They must then be examined, and decisions reached on who should 'remediate' the land, and to what standards, or what uses the land can be restricted to. To enable this, the Council had to prepare an inspection strategy, which it did in June 2001. Since the publication of the original Contaminated Land Inspection Strategy the strategy has been revised to include recent changes in legislation and updated statistics.
You can view summary of the updated strategy and appendices (pdf) by using the right hand menu, under 'downloads'.
The Council may also hold information about other areas of land which may be described as derelict, previously developed, brownfield, closed landfills or otherwise, but which do NOT meet the legal definition of 'contaminated'. Property owners, developers and anybody else with an interest is entitled to ask what information the Council holds about specific land, and the Council can make a charge for supplying that information.
The Councils Planning Division also has an interest in brownfield land, and has specific polices in the local plan regarding development. The Building Control section may require particular building methods or materials to avoid any problems from potential contamination, or as a planning condition a developer may have to submit a report or remediate the site prior to using it.
What are the objectives of this service and its standards?
To meet statutory requirements relating to contaminated land in the Borough, by inspecting all areas of contaminated land in accordance with its strategy.
Contact: For further information tel on 01827 719436, fax 0870 400 1858 or in person
Advice and Information
If you suspect an area of land is contaminated, report it to us and let us explore further (see below for contact details).
If you want to find out whether the Council holds information about an area of land, telephone to confirm if you need to send a letter or cheque. A basic search of records held by the council about whether there are any potentially contaminated sites within 250m of the property on which the search is based currently costs £11.35, with more detailed information costing £54.60. Typically, solicitors ask for this information as part of the property conveyancing process.
Links to other information and resources/organisations
Try the Environment Agency on http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/ (good for resources and a lot of detail), or the appropriate Government department [DEFRA] on https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-environment-food-rural-affairs (a good signposting website to other useful links), or the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health on www.cieh.org/.
