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The Environmental Protection Act 1990 defines contaminated land as 'any land which appears to the local authority in whose area it is situated to be in such a condition, by means of substances in, on or under the land that:

(a)significant harm is being caused or there is a significant possibility of such harm being caused; or

(b)pollution of controlled waters is being, or is likely to be, caused.

The council's duties

The council has four main duties under the legislation. These are:

• to produce a Contaminated Land Strategy;
• to inspect the borough to identify contaminated land;
• to ensure that contaminated land is remediated; and
• to record certain prescribed information regarding regulatory actions on a public register.

Who pays?

The law follows the 'polluter pays' principle - the person or organisation that caused or permitted the contamination must pay to have it put right. If that person or organisation is not known, then the current owner of the land may become responsible. Owners and occupiers of domestic properties are not usually liable for these costs.

The approval of an application for redevelopment of brownfield (land in the past which has been contaminated by industries such as gasworks or chemical works etc) sites will only be granted on condition that the contamination is cleaned up to a standard that makes it suitable for the new use of the land.

In some cases the Environment Agency may take over the regulation of a site from the council, once it has been declared as 'contaminated land'.

You can download Knowsley’s contaminated land strategy below, or contact us for further information using the details below.

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