Introduction

The Contaminated Land (England) Regulations 2000 became law on 1 April 2000, giving effect to Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act (EPA) 1990 and providing for the first time a legal definition of ‘contaminated land’ and a new regulatory regime for its identification and remediation. Similar legislation came into force in Scotland and Wales on 14 July 2000 and 1 July 2001, respectively. In Northern Ireland, the Waste and Contaminated Land (Northern Ireland) Order 1997 includes bans on the depositing, etc. of controlled waste as in Part IIA of the EPA 1990; however, the provisions relating to the identification and clean up of contaminated land are not yet in force.