Contaminated land

Epsom and Ewell borough’s industrial legacy is less than in many urban areas, but land in the borough may still be affected by contamination as a result of historical land use, industrial processes, waste disposal and accidental spillages.  If land contamination is not dealt with adequately it can pose risks to human health, the environment and sustainable economic development.

Some land contamination is dealt with via the planning system. We are required by law to produce a strategy to deal with contaminated land as legally defined, and in accordance with Part 2A of the Environment Protection Act 1990 which came into force in 2001.

We have been extremely pro-active in embracing its Part 2A duties and consequently made progress quickly, developing a phased and iterative approach to implementing our Contaminated Land Strategy involving inspection of land in the borough and prioritisation of sites using a database of data and information. 

To date, there are over 300 potentially contaminated sites on our database, but none of these are currently believed to be contaminated land as formally defined, and due to the relatively low sensitivity of the uses of many of the sites (e.g. industrial, commercial), we are not currently planning to investigate under Part 2A legislation.

All local authorities are required to maintain a Contaminated Land Register, which must include details of any Remediation Notices served for contaminated land.  To arrange to see our Register and Strategy document or for further information about land contamination in the borough, you may contact us by telephone: Telephone: 01372 732000 or by email: contactus@epsom-ewell.gov.uk