Hi David,
First of all I am not the originator of this email thread but of the same name so fear not David E Jackson hasn't gone mad and started replying to his own posts...
Secondly good question - I have pondered this myself over the years and have often asked consultants the question " brilliant strategy to mitigate the ground risks...will work a charm on day 1 but what about Year 5, Year 10...?]. Some other more interesting responses have been "well you will have to inspect it under Part 2a if the mitigation measures fail in the future...". I have approved developments with PD rights removed, request for restrictive covenants to go on etc but how effective these mechanism are I don’t know.
For me this all comes back to the risk level of the site. If it marginally elevated heavy metals and I'm worried about a capping breach e.g. someone digging a pond and spreading the contam material on the garden I wont lose any sleep over it due to the conservatism in the risk assessment process and the likelihood of this happening. BUT I do get worried about gassing sites on or adjacent to proposed housing where it will be difficult to ensure that the gas protection measures are carried through into any future extensions of the properties. For this scenario you need to either object to the proposals or pass the risk/decision on to the planners i.e. object unless they remove the PD rights and make it clear that the planning department ensure that suitable conditions go any future extensions [as I currently don’t look at extensions as a consultee and I don’t plan to in the future].
Kind regards
Dave
David Jackson
Land Quality Officer
Wakefield Council
Regeneration & Economic Growth | Environmental Health
Wakefield One | P.O.Box. 700 | Burton Street | Wakefield | WF1 2EB
t 0345 8506506
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-----Original Message-----
From: Contaminated Land Management Discussion List [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of David E Jackson
Sent: 24 November 2014 15:10
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Risk management in perpetuity
Dear All,
Thanks for your latest contributions... but can we try and stay focused here. As I have mentioned twice before the issue here is NOT the effectiveness of the proposed risk management scheme, but rather how one should ensure that these schemes remain effective into the future.
How do we ensure that vents remain open, cover systems are not disturbed, membranes are not punctured etc etc. into the future? Is there any point in installing a 300mm concrete slab if the next occupier promptly digs it up to grow veggies or relying on a vent space beneath a structure if the next occupier blocks it off and uses it for storage, or encapsulate asbestos waste under a car park which the next occupier turns into a planting bed?. And what about the natural degradation of remediation systems by unchecked plant growth, surface erosion or natural changes in groundwater flows or chemistry into the future?
Is it morally (or legally) justifiable to abandon future occupiers to their ignorance (or is that stupidity?). Is that why we (public health professionals) do the job we do? Are we not just saving up work for the next generation of CLOs? just as those in the 1970s appear to have done (at one of my sites at least?).
You might consider such alternative approaches as the US Superfund (apologies but I am no expert) requiring clean up suitable for "all uses”? or whether regulation of remediation schemes could be achieved through a licensing system (such as caravan site) or a waste permit, or even something as basic as the Australian system of mandatory disclosure and memorials on title (Restrictive Covenants?) with criminal sanctions for failure to disclose? Surely as a profession should be aiming a little higher than simply relying on an expectation that an individual will do the right thing. That’s not much of a basis for a sustainable remediation strategy!
As ever your comments (on topic) are enjoyed and appreciated.
David E Jackson
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