Contaminated Land/Ground

If a site has been previously used for an industrial process it may well be contaminated and give rise to health risks. Examples of possible contaminants are Acids, alkalis, metals, solvents, gases, asbestos, micro organisms, and toxic, flammable and/or explosive substances. Such areas may have to be cleared and full details of the nature, extent and level of such contamination must be entered in the Construction Phase Plan in order that contractors may assess the risks to health and the precautions that may be necessary. The designer should examine the possibility of siting the structure away from the contaminated parts of the site which will allow the contamination to be sealed in and the area used for car parking etc. In addition any remaining contaminated land risks should be recorded in the Health & Safety File.

Asbestos in Soil

Previously-developed land may be found to be contaminated by Asbestos. Abandoned industrial premises, former waste disposal sites (including those reclaimed for agricultural or amenity use etc.) and other derelict or unused land may potentially be contaminated by buried asbestos to some degree. At some sites, asbestos may also be present on the surface, e.g. on sites where it was used for heat insulation (as lagging for pipes or tanks), for fire control, or in the construction of walls and roofs of buildings. In addition, asbestos waste may have been illegally dumped on derelict industrial land. 36. Asbestos may also become entrained in soil and C&D materials on a brownfield site due to demolition activities, where asbestos has not been fully removed from site structures prior to demolition.

In all these cases this is considered contaminated land and, as Asbestos is present, great care should be taken when dealing with it. For guidance on this please see the CAR-SOIL Guidance.