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Construction & Property
Contaminated land compliance checklist
A yes/no checklist for verifying contaminated land compliance, covering council records checks, environmental investigations, planning conditions, remediation requirements, and ongoing monitoring obligations.
UK-wide
Guide summary
Check if your land is contaminated and take action if needed. Use the checklist to review council records, investigate risks, and meet planning conditions. Local authorities enforce rules under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
- Check local authority records for contaminated land history
- Identify contaminant sources, pathways, and receptors using DEFRA’s 2012 guidance
- Conduct a Phase 1 Preliminary Risk Assessment (PRA) for development plans
- Trigger a Phase 2 ground investigation if contamination risks are found
- Follow the Land Contamination Risk Management (LCRM) framework for remediation
- Comply with National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) paragraph 189 for developments
- Maintain public registers of remediation actions as required by law
- Special sites (e.g., nuclear, SSSIs) are regulated by the Environment Agency
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About this checklist
Use this checklist to verify that you have met your contaminated land obligations. It covers the main compliance steps for businesses that own, occupy, or are purchasing land that may be contaminated. Work through each section and address any gaps before they become enforcement risks.
This checklist applies primarily to England. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate regulatory frameworks, noted in the callouts below.
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1
Check council contaminated land records
Contact your local authority environmental health department to check whether your site is on the public register of contaminated land or has been the subject of any Part IIA determination. Also check the contaminated land strategy for your local authority area to understand their inspection priorities.
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2
Review historical land use
Obtain historical mapping and check whether the site or adjacent land has had any potentially contaminative use, such as factories, fuel storage, waste disposal, military use, mining, or heavy agriculture. This information feeds into a Phase 1 desk study.
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3
Commission a Phase 1 desk study if appropriate
For any site with potential contamination history, instruct a qualified environmental consultant to carry out a Preliminary Risk Assessment to BS 10175 standard. This identifies whether plausible pollutant linkages exist and whether further investigation is needed.
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4
Complete Phase 2 intrusive investigation if required
If the Phase 1 study identifies potential contamination risks, commission a Phase 2 ground investigation involving soil and groundwater sampling. Compare results against Generic Assessment Criteria or Category 4 Screening Levels to determine whether remediation is needed.
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5
Satisfy planning conditions on contamination
If your site has planning permission with contamination conditions, verify that all required assessments have been submitted and approved by the local planning authority. Common conditions include requirement for desk study, site investigation, remediation strategy, and verification report.
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6
Complete any remediation requirements
If a remediation notice has been served under Part IIA, or remediation is required under planning conditions, verify that all works have been completed to the required standard and that a verification report has been submitted to and approved by the relevant authority.
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7
Check for ongoing monitoring obligations
Some remediation schemes require long-term monitoring of groundwater, soil gas, or remediation system performance. Verify that any monitoring obligations are being met and that monitoring reports are submitted on schedule.
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8
Review environmental insurance cover
If you hold environmental liability insurance, check that the policy remains in force, covers the correct risks, and that you have complied with all policy conditions including disclosure of known contamination and maintenance of any required monitoring.
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9
Keep contamination records accessible
Maintain all environmental reports, investigation results, remediation verification, monitoring data, and correspondence with regulators in an accessible file. These records may be needed for future property transactions, regulatory enquiries, or insurance claims.