Contaminated Ground, Contaminated Groundwater?
The UK Groundwater Forum’s 2011 conference was held jointly with the Hydrogeological Group of the Geological Society and considered the on-going and future challenges for groundwater management, protection and remediation resulting from land contamination.
The UK continues to have a significant legacy of land contamination caused by a wide-range of polluting activities occurring over the last 200 years or more. This contamination poses a significant threat to groundwater as well as the wider environment and human health.
Considerable effort has been made since the mid-1990s to tackle the contaminated land legacy particularly since the introduction of legislative measures under the Environmental Protection Act (Part IIA). As a result, tens of thousands of hectares of land have been cleaned up. This has been possible through the technological developments that have taken place both in terms of characterizing the nature of the contamination and its linkage with the environment (conceptual models, investigation and risk assessment) and also through the development of approaches and techniques for remediation and risk management. A recent review of the Part IIA legislation has found that, whilst the legislation has been effective, there is need to update the supporting guidance.
Conference Presentations
Groundwater remediation - where we are. And why
Phil Morgan, Sirius Geotechnical & Environmental Ltd
Review of changes to the EPA PartIIa process
Trevor Howard, Environment Agency
Contaminated land and the planning system
Bill Baker, Advisor to the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health on Contaminated land issues
New remediation technologies
Nicola Harries, CL:AIRE
Ground remediation in South Wales
Michael Poland and Richard Mitchener, Atkins
Emerging groundwater contaminants
Dan Lapworth, British Geological Survey
Urban groundwater for public supply
Matilda Beatty, Severn Trent Water
Managing rising mine water to prevent aquifer pollution
Ian Watson, The Coal Authority
Our conference was sponsored by:
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