As the bio-remediation process continued and the materials being remediated were cleaned to the specification, it was then time to replace the material. This is where the Code of Practice comes into play. It is now possible to take the material that you previously dug out (because it was contaminated and effectively a waste) and place the clean (processed) material back in the void created. As the Code of Practice is in place on this site, this clean and suitable material is no longer classified as waste and becomes a useable resource. Previously, this would not have been possible without a permit, an exemption or similar. Now under the Code of Practice there is no issue. Thus, the cleaned material is backfilled into the void where it came from and not one lorry load of the soil has been moved off site or land filled. This Code of Practice has huge implications for the construction and environmental industries, as well as to the environment. In the case above Soil and Water Remediation reduced the need for 100 lorry movements from an area where the roads are already at bursting point. There was no need to bring in clean, quarried material from an unsustainable source to replace the void created, as might have been the case in the past, given the treated material was re-used. The only material needed to be imported was some top soil to replace the volume lost to the underground storage tanks. While this project was relatively small and self contained, it is possible to run multiple sites and create one treatment site at a separate location where space is available. These schemes are known as Clusters. Thus, it could be that one contractor has multiple sites in an area but there is not enough space on any one site to carry out waste processing, but a separate, remote site can be found where waste from all sites can be treated. This model may be advantageous in areas where there are numerous sites close together, reducing overall lorry mileages as a consequence. Overall, it can be seen that the Code of Practice is a positive step forward in terms of the regulatory process being simplified. It is also a positive step forward for the environment with a re-use of materials that would have been previously land filled ,a reduction in the use of unsustainable sources of soil, stone, sand etc and the consequent reduction in lorry movements and related mileages moving these materials round our roads. For further details on the scheme including the criteria for the Qualified Person please see the CL:AIRE web site. Brian Graham is Director of Soil and Water Remediation and is a Qualified Person under the Code of Practice scheme.
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