Remediation

Once the presence of contamination has been established on a site, and a risk assessment performed, a decision is required on what suitable remediation programme will make the land fit for purpose.

Eaton Geotechnics Ltd have wide experience in dealing with contaminated sites, identifying potential contaminant issues and designing and implementing cost effective remediation strategies.

Contaminated sites typically have a history of occupation by industry, where refining or processing of materials has produced toxic by-products which have been insufficiently contained.

Filling stations, industrial manufacturing or processing of metal, scrap yards, waste disposal sites and oil storage sites are common examples where pollutants may have entered the environment as a result of leaks, spillage, poor disposal or storage.

Once the ground becomes contaminated, these toxins will often start to spread to adjacent areas, as they become dispersed through both natural cycles and human intervention. This can occur particularly quickly once the contaminants enter the groundwater as a result of leaching or drainage through the surface layers, and in severe cases may pose a risk to underlying aquifers.

Since this can provide a major risk to the environment as well as human health both locally and over an extended area, rapid and effective containment or treatment is essential. This is necessary not only to make the site safe for its intended purpose, but also to offset the potential for future legal claims as a result of contaminant breakthrough at a later date. Following a qualitative, site specific environmental risk assessment, our engineers would then produce both factual and interpretive reports based on the findings, and make recommendations for action. Usually this would involve detailed quantitative surveys of the contaminated land followed by implementation of the appropriate remedial works agreed by the regulatory authorities under our close supervision. We then routinely provide post remediation verification to protect the client against future liability once the works have been completed to the required standard.

The requirements for each site vary, but in addition to the services previously described, we are able to offer Waste Acceptance Criteria (WAC) testing to enable costing of materials removal from site, and waste management strategies appropriate to the material in question.

In some cases materials can be processed in-situ, whereas in others it is necessary for treatment to occur offsite. Since December 2008 landfill tax exemptions for contaminated soils on such development sites have been removed, and with the landfill tax increasing each year, optimum waste management is essential to minimise the associated costs.

We liaise throughout with the regulatory bodies such as the Environmental Agency and can provide guidance and assistance with planning requirements and applications.

Good analysis of the prevailing ground conditions and the correct choice of remediation options can contribute significantly to increasing the profitability of a development and maximising the return on investment whilst minimising current and future risks.

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