Contaminated land

Report contaminated land

If you would like to report a piece of land that you believe to be contaminated, please complete our online report form.

Find out if land is contaminated

Public register

The council holds a public register for all the contaminated sites which can be viewed, free of charge, at the council offices at The Grange, Ely CB7 4EE.

What to do if you are moving home or buying land or property

Ask your solicitor to conduct an environmental search for you. The results of these searches should be treated with caution as not all contaminated land has been identified and the databases on which the searches are based are not always accurate.
If you believe the land is contaminated, contact the council to discuss the site. We have certain statutory duties.
Engage a consultant to carry out a desktop study and an intrusive investigation of the site if necessary. Intrusive investigations consist, typically, of trial pits and boreholes to collect soil and groundwater samples, these are analysed for toxic chemicals. A risk assessment is produced based on the sample results and a remediation strategy is formulated, if necessary. Much of the work is very specialist and you will almost certainly need the assistance of a specialist contractor. However, your knowledge of the history of the land will help the contractor carry out the site investigation.

Read Public Health England’s factsheet on potentially contaminated land, gardens and allotments

Responsibility for cleaning up contaminated land

Under current government guidance, liability for historic contamination lies with the polluter of the land, known as a Class A Person.

If the polluter cannot be found, liability rests with the owner and or occupier of the land, known as a Class B Person.

If a Class B person cannot be found the site is declared an 'orphan site' and responsibility rests with the local authority.

In general, where a site is being re-developed, the developer pays for the remediation of the land.

The role of the council with contaminated land

The council has a range of responsibilities with respect to contaminated land.

Firstly, we regulate potentially contaminated sites through the planning process. This includes the ability to attach conditions to the planning permissions of sites which are potentially contaminated. The majority of the contaminated sites are dealt with in this manner.

We also have statutory responsibilities under Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to review potentially contaminated sites in our district and assess them in terms of what risk they post to health and the water supply.

We then prioritise sites according to risk and encourage, or if necessary enforce, clean-up works.

Specifically we are responsible for:

inspecting the district to identify any contaminated land
establish responsibilities for remediation of any contaminated land
ensure that appropriate remediation takes place through agreement by serving a remediation notice
undertaking remedial work itself if necessary
keep a public register detailing the regulatory action, which has been undertaken if a site is declared as contaminated land

Definition of contaminated land

Under Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 the statutory definition of contaminated land is '...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.'

Statutory guidance has been issued concerning this definition (DEFRA Circular 01/2006).

How land becomes contaminated

Land is usually contaminated through a previous or existing industrial use. Examples of such uses are:

agricultural activities
waste disposal (licensed and unlicensed)
diesel storage tanks
petroleum spirit storage
chemical works
cement manufacture
scrap metal/ vehicle dismantling
printing
dockyards
rail sidings
gas works
power generation
metal finishing/smelting
waste incineration
asbestos manufacture
petrochemical installations
petroleum spirit storage
paper manufacturing

Health risks associated with contaminated land

In many instances contamination on land will only pose a risk if a receptor, such as a person, is exposed to the land. This typically happens when brownfield land is re-developed. If land is causing an immediate risk, then the authority will work with the polluter/landowners to make the land safe.

Contaminants from the soil, such as heavy metals and hydrocarbons, may enter our bodies and present risks, through:

inhalation of soil dust
skin contact with the soil
inhalation of vapours
eating contaminated soil (babies and small children)
eating vegetables grown in contaminated soil
drinking contaminated water (usually private water supplies)

Other potential impacts of contaminated land

Other potential impacts of contaminated land include:

pollution of water supplies and rivers
damage to building foundations through chemical attack
subsidence
odour nuisance
vegetation dieback or growth inhibition
reduction in property value