Reclamation Of Contaminated Land

Land contamination is of global concern with many of the world’s industries potentially harming the environment and human health. Along with rapidly changing policy and technological developments, this is an interdisciplinary area in which successful contaminated land management depends on the expertise of and interaction between a number of scientific and engineering disciplines. Reclamation of Contaminated Land takes into account the different groups involved in contaminated land management and offers a flexible learning approach based on practical experience and research. It presents an overview of the general skills and knowledge required, encompassing both general management and regulatory practice and specific land contamination issues. Divided into two parts, Part I discusses site characterisation and the design of site investigations, and the central role of conceptual models and risk assessment in decision making. Part II discusses how risks from contaminated land are managed and the role of different remediation approaches to achieving this. This book is of great value for 2nd/3rd/4th year undergraduates and MSc students in Environmental Science, Environmental Technology, Environmental Management, Geography, Geology, Estate and Land Management. It is also key reading for undergraduates and MSc students in Chemical Engineering, Civil & Environmental Engineering and Environmental Chemistry, as well as professional planners and developers, and local authorities.

Contaminated land and the methods and legal controls governing its reclamation for subsequent development and use are of great current interest and concern. This volume covers aspects of this subject, ranging from the origins and extent of contaminated land problems, including effects on human health, through investigative measures, to specific techniques of remediation. It is written in the context of the new UK contaminated land regime and includes human and ecological risk assessment methodology, and the legal liabilities and insurance aspects of contaminated land. This authoritative review will be welcomed by those involved in the areas of land use planning and development, consultants and engineers in contaminated site investigation and remediation, and environmental regulators. Students of land management and environmental science will also find it essential reading.

Chemically contaminated land has only recently been recognized as an immediate or long-term potential hazard, and published guidance on how to tackle such land has been sparse. Indeed much of the available technical work emphasizes the risks and dangers, rather than indicating safe and economical strategies of reclamation. This book provides a comprehensive treatment of the important aspects of land reclamation. Its basic aim is to dispel the myths that have become associated with the subject and to indicate methods and strategies that can be used for safe and economical reclamation. The authors concentrate on the more important facets of reclamation and indicate where advice and information is more or less certain. As in any newly developed field there are still uncertainties and, for this reason, not all the chapters contain equivalent amounts of detail. All the authors have expertise in the field of land reclamation, and differences in emphasis between authors reflect the present state of the subject. Overall, the book emphasizes that contaminated land can be reclaimed safely provided that sufficient attention is paid to detail and that the proposed end use of the land is appropriate and based on a detailed knowledge of the site.

Contaminated land and the methods and legal controls governing its reclamation for subsequent development and use are of great current interest and concern. This volume in the Issues in Environmental Science and Technology series contains seven articles which treat the many aspects of this subject, ranging from risk assessment and risk management, through specific remediation methods and the evolution of government policy and controls, to analysis of the legal and technical features of specific environmental insurance policies. The chemistry of the non-ferrous heavy metals lead, zinc and cadmium is examined in relation to reclamation of superfund sites in the USA alongside a consideration of the role of the Welsh Development Agency in developing strategies for the recovery of derelict and contaminated land. An authoritative treatment of each of the topics is ensured by the particular expertise and distinction of the authors, and as such Contaminated Land and Its Reclamation will make an important contribution to the public debate on these issues. It will be essential reading for all those groups of people directly or indirectly involved, from consultants and their technical advisors, through developers, contractors and landowners, to local authorities and government agencies with responsibility for policy and its implementation in this area.