Understanding groundwater protection

Paragraph 183(c) in The National Planning Policy Framework requires ‘adequate site investigation information, prepared by a competent person, is available to inform these assessments.’

The NPPF glossary¹ defines what a ‘competent person²’ as: ‘A person with a recognised relevant qualification, sufficient experience in dealing with the type(s) of pollution or land instability, and membership of a relevant professional organisation.’

In practice, the Environment Agency and Local Authorities expect you use a consultant (or team of consultants) who has appropriate knowledge, skills, experience, and qualifications in the specific area of technical expertise required for your development.

They may demonstrate this with qualifications and experience in a specific technical or scientific discipline or application, or by multidisciplinary qualifications. These include for example:

• a Chartered Member or equivalent of the Institution of Civil Engineers, The Geological Society of London, The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, The Royal Society of Chemistry, or other appropriate Institutions.
• a Suitably Qualified Person (SQP) registered under the National Quality Mark Scheme³
• the Society of Brownfield Risk Assessment (SoBRA)⁴ accreditation scheme
• a Specialist in Land Contamination⁵ (SiLC)
• membership of a professional organisation relevant to land contamination. https://www.ags.org.uk/directory/⁶
• a specialist in the gas protection verification accreditation scheme (GPVS)⁷
• a proven track record of dealing with land contamination

NB. It is advisable to obtain at least three quotes for any work before you buy a service.

If remediation strategies, assessment reports and site investigation reports submitted to the Local Planning Authority are not of sufficient high quality and robust, then the Environment Agency and local authority Contaminated Land Officers are likely to object to the application. Further work is likely to be needed at significant additional costs and delays, which may also have significant implications for project viability.

1. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/national-planning-policy-framework/annex-2-glossary
2. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/national-planning-policy-framework/annex-2-glossary
3. https://www.claire.co.uk/projects-and-initiatives/nqms-sqp-register
4. https://sobra.org.uk/resources/reports/
5. https://www.silc.org.uk/
6. https://www.ags.org.uk/directory/
7. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/land-contamination-risk-management-lcrm/lcrm-before-you-start