Contaminated Land

Reporting an Observation/Incidence of Contaminated Land and/or Water Pollution (i.e. Service Request)

If you wish to report an incidence of contaminated land and/or waster pollution you should first read through the following information. You can contact the Environmental Protection Unit with any information.

Incidence of contaminated land and/or water pollution that you may wish to report include:

• Something that you may have seen happen such as someone tipping rubbish on to land, something being poured down a drain/into a river, a leaking tank, etc.
• Something that you may have encountered while digging in your garden or walking in the Country-side. For example coloured liquids and/or solids, unpleasant smells, etc.
• Something that happened in the past, such as burying of chemicals/wastes at a factory you used to work at, or a pollution incident that you don’t think was reported to the Council.
• Knowledge you have about what was tipped into a landfill. The Council has records of tipping in the Borough, but most of the landfilling took place before controls were in place in 1974. This means that we often rely heavily on reports from council workers and the public.
• Knowledge you have about the past use of a factory or industry. The Council has historical records of the Borough mainly from available mapping. This doesn't always provide full details of all of the industrial uses that may have taken place at a site.

If you make a report of contamination to the Council and in particular where you name someone as having carried out the activity, it is important that you provide details of your name and contact details. If you provide information to the Council your name and contact details will be kept confidential. Unfortunately, were a report is anonymous, the Council may not be able to follow it up.

When you provide information on potential contamination and/or water pollution it is useful if you can provide as much information as possible to help the Council make a decision on what action needs taking. The following points identify the type of information that you may be able to provide:

If you have any concerns about substances or contamination we recommend that you contact the Council. You should not take unnecessary risks by touching, smelling or removing an affected area.

Details of the Substance or Contamination

• If possible get pictures of the contamination.
• Is the substance a liquid or solid?
• What is the colour of the substance?
• Does the substance smell and if so what of?
• How much substance is present (i.e. area covered)?
• Where is the substance (in the ground, leaking from a wall or bank)?
• Is the substance potentially effecting anyone or anything (people, rivers, wildlife)?

Details of where Contamination/Pollution is

• How can the contamination be found (if possible draw a plan or mark an X on a map)?
• Are there any features that describe were the contamination is, such as a building, factory, a path, road name, river, etc?
• Would you be willing to meet an Officer from Tameside MBC to show them where the contamination is?
• The address of a property where contamination/pollution has been observed.

Historical Uses

Where the incident or contamination happened in the past:

• Approximate dates when the incident/contamination originally happened?
• Whether there is any current evidence of the incident/contamination?
• Whether the incident happened at the same time as another event (i.e. factory opening, national holiday, death, etc) so that we may corroborate dates?
• As much detail as you can remember of what happened.
• How certain you are about each part of your report (for example whether the substance leaking from a tank or that was spilled on the ground was definitely petrol, you think it was petrol, or someone else said it was probably petrol).

People or Companies Who May Have Been Involved

• What were the names of those involved in an incident?
• Do you know their contact details or where they live?
• What company did the people involved in an incident work for?
• Do you know whether the company still exists, whether it has been bought out, changed its name, or whether it has gone bust?
• Do you know the address of any company involved?