Contaminated land

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What is contaminated land?

Due to Renfrewshire's rich industrial past, some areas of land may have been affected by contamination.

While this may be true of many sites in Renfrewshire, the vast majority of these will not be 'contaminated land', which has a specific legal definition.

The definition is : 'Any 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 -

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

'(b) significant pollution of the water environment is being caused or there is a significant possibility of such pollution being caused'.

'Contaminated land' is land which poses unacceptable risks to human health or the wider environment in its current use.

How is potential land contamination dealt with in Renfrewshire?

The Council's Environmental Improvement Team aims to protect human health and the environment by working to make sure that land affected by contamination is cleaned up to a suitable standard. This is achieved using the legal provisions of Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and also through our role as consultees in the planning process.

Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 requires each local authority to draw up an inspection strategy for dealing with contaminated land within its area. The Council first developed a contaminated land strategy for Renfrewshire in September 2001, based on guidance from the then Scottish Executive. That document was revised and updated in May 2010 and you can download the current version below. All local libraries throughout Renfrewshire hold copies of the strategy.

All local libraries throughout Renfrewshire hold copies of the strategy.

Contaminated Land Strategy 2010-2015 (pdf - 579KB)

Here is a report on the investigations carried out at Erskinefauld Park, Linwood in 2008.

Report on ground investigation works at Erskinefauld Park, Linwood (pdf - 32KB)

You need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view these documents. Download Acrobat Reader here.

Guidance describing how potential land contamination should be investigated and assessed as part of the planning process can be found on the Council’s planning pages at:

Contaminated Land Guidance (pdf - 580KB)

Contact information

• email: e-prot.es@renfrewshire.gov.uk
• phone 0141 840 3106
• call or write to us at:
  Environmental Improvement
  Renfrewshire House
  Cotton Street
  Paisley
  PA1 1BR