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Environmental Searches and Enquiries
Summary
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If you are buying or selling a property you should consider the possibility that the land may have been contaminated by a previous use of the site.
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Conveyancing Solicitors will usually carry out an environmental search to find out if there are potential contamination issues at a particular property.
Environmental searches can be obtained from various companies. These companies keep large databases of environmental information, which detail various previous land uses that may indicate potential contamination. If these companies are satisfied that there are no potential contamination issues at a property, they will issue a certificate.
However, search companies often do not provide a certificate, but advise consultation with the Council’s Environmental Protection Team to obtain further information.
Babergh District Council recordsWe hold a variety of information, which is often more detailed than that provided by search companies. This information includes details of historic land uses, of closed landfill sites and in some cases, of ground investigations (i.e. soil testing) that have been carried out on site or nearby.
We can provide written responses to requests for information about contamination issues at a property. Please note that a minimum fee of £57.00 plus an hourly rate of £33 for each hour over one half hour is charged for a written response, to cover the cost of the work. If a site is identified as having a past industrial use, it may require detailed inspection by us as part of our Contaminated Land Strategy, please select the link below to view Babergh's Contaminated Land Strategy and Register web page.
Only after this detailed inspection has been completed can we give an opinion on the level of risk and comment on the likelihood of a property being determined as contaminated land under Part IIA of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Until this stage is reached we are only able to provide factual information about a site so that any prospective purchaser can make an informed decision as to whether to proceed.
You may wish to consider options such as employing a competent environmental consultant for further advice. You may also be able to obtain insurance to cover the risks arising from potential contamination.
Request contaminated land informationPlease contact us if you wish to request site information regarding contaminated land and past industrial landuse. We require submission of a site location map, a cheque for the minimum fee of £57.00 made payable to ‘Babergh District Council’, along with a covering letter addressed to the Environmental Protection Team, Babergh District Council, Corks Lane, Hadleigh, IPSWICH, Suffolk, IP7 6SJ.
Please note that we aim to respond to environmental enquiries within 10 working days.
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Related pages on this website ...
External links ...
Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
These pages provide details of Defra's work on contaminated land. Contaminated land web page
Suffolk Searches
Suffolk Searches is a partnership of local authorities providing a single source to Local Land Charge information across Suffolk and the only providers of an Official Search (Form LLC1).
www.suffolksearches.co.uk
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Last updated on: 02 April 2012 | Date of next review: 02 April 2013
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