Get voluntary remediation advice for contaminated land and groundwater
You can use the voluntary remediation advice service to get more detailed site-specific regulatory advice where land contamination has impacted on controlled waters.
Applies to England
Who can use this service
This service is restricted to sites where land contamination has impacted on controlled waters. Controlled waters include territorial and coastal waters, inland freshwaters such as rivers, lakes and ponds, and groundwater contained in underground strata.
You can use this service if your site:
- sits outside any spatial planning application or discharge of condition consultation
- is not regulated under the Environmental Permitting Regulations
- is not subject to a Part 2A determination, environment damage regulations remediation notice or anti-pollution works notice
The Environment Agency expects you to be a competent person and strongly recommends following the Land Contamination Risk Management (LCRM) guidance when dealing with land affected by contamination, contaminated soils and groundwater.
What you can get advice on
The voluntary remediation advice service is advisory only. The developer or landowner is responsible for making sure a contaminated site is safe to develop and occupy.
You can ask us to provide regulatory and technical review of the work that has been carried out by your competent environmental consultants. We will assess if the site has an acceptable or unacceptable risk of pollution to the water environment.
The voluntary remediation advice service can review documents you have prepared using the LCRM guidance, such as:
- preliminary risk assessment
- conceptual site models
- site investigation proposals or results
- generic quantitative and detailed quantitative risk assessments
- remediation options appraisals
- remediation strategies
- remediation method statements
- monitoring proposals
- verification reports
What the service cannot help with
The voluntary remediation advice service cannot provide comments on or confirm:
- you do not need a permit
- you meet the general binding rules for discharges of wastewater to surface water or ground
- your documents will be acceptable for future planning or environmental permit applications
- work associated with definition of waste, radioactive substances or hydraulic fracking
How much it costs
The initial review costs include 5 hours of work to check your submission and identify the nature and amount of technical and legal input required to carry out the full technical assessment.
If you submit multiple documents or need a more detailed assessment, the Environment Agency will send you an estimate of how many hours it will take to complete.
The fees will be invoiced using the current costs as detailed in the Environment Agency’s fees and charges.
How to request advice
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Contact the groundwater and contaminated land team for your area in the Contact the Environment Agency section.
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If the service can help, you will receive a copy of the terms of service, the charging agreement, and an invoice for the interim fee (5 hours plus VAT). You must pay the interim fee before the voluntary remediation advice service can start work on your request.
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When you have paid the interim fee, the voluntary remediation advice service will assess your submission.
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You will receive monthly invoices by email for completed work.
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Once the review is complete and all invoices are paid, the team will email you a letter explaining the detailed technical review and the outcome. This includes whether the Environment Agency needs to use other regulatory powers to deal with the pollution risks on the site.
The Environment Agency may send you an updated time and cost estimate to sign and return before they can continue your assessment. This may be because:
- more information is needed to complete the assessment
- the assessment is more complex than first estimated
If you do not pay invoices on time, the service will stop their technical review and may end the contract. There is more detail in the terms and conditions for using the voluntary remediation advice service.
Check if the service is available in your area
The voluntary remediation advice service may not always be available to take on work, depending on local resources and priorities. Contact the groundwater and contaminated land team for your area first.
Cumbria and Lancashire
gwcl_cmblnc@environment-agency.gov.uk
Devon, Cornwall and Isles of Scilly
devoncornwallgwcl@environment-agency.gov.uk
East Anglia
Contact gwandcl_ang_eastern@environment-agency.gov.uk for:
- Broadland
- East Suffolk
- Essex
- North Norfolk
Contact gwcl.eanwest@environment-agency.gov.uk for:
- Cam and Ely Ouse
- North-west Norfolk
- Old Bedford including Middle Level
- Upper Ouse and Bedford Ouse
Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire
gwcl_gmmc@environment-agency.gov.uk
Hertfordshire and North London
gwcl.hatfield@environment-agency.gov.uk
Kent, South London and East Sussex
ksl.gwcl@environment-agency.gov.uk
Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire
lna_gwcl@environment-agency.gov.uk
North East
gwcl_ne@environment-agency.gov.uk
Solent and South Downs
ssdgroundwaterprotect@environment-agency.gov.uk
Thames
gwclwestthames@environment-agency.gov.uk
Wessex
groundwater.wessex@environment-agency.gov.uk
West Midlands
gwclwestwids@environment-agency.gov.uk
Yorkshire
neyorkshiregroundwater@environment-agency.gov.uk
How your information is used
The Environment Agency will only use your information to give you advice about your site and remediation proposals. They will follow the terms and conditions for the voluntary remediation advice service.
Freedom of Information and Environmental Information Regulations requests
As a public body, the Environment Agency responds to Freedom of Information (FOI) and Environmental Information Regulations requests. When requested, they must assess what information to share on a case-by-case basis. They may have to share information you consider confidential. You should consider this when you decide what information to send them.
If you have questions or concerns about this, email enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk before sending your information.
Complaints and appeals
You cannot appeal against the voluntary remediation advice. To make a complaint you can follow the Environment Agency’s complaints procedure.