Less ‘dig and dump’ projects and more sustainable remedial solutions

Technically and legally, remediation in the 1980s and 1990s was more straightforward than it is today. Contaminated soils were often excavated and sent to inexpensive landfills and groundwater was only treated where impacts affected an abstraction. Client’s responsibility ended when the contaminated soil went into the landfill. Legal implications for the client were limited to the residual contamination around the margins of the excavation and the quality of the imported material that was used to fill the hole.

Less reliance on landfill has driven more innovative, sustainable solutions resulting in an increase in on-site treatment based solutions. If contaminated material is removed from site, it is often