Mandatory Auditing Needed to Get Off Qld’s Contaminated Land Registers

Getting a site off the contaminated land registers has real commercial value as it eliminates uncertainty about potential land uses and development costs that can impact the value of the land.

In Queensland there are two contaminated land registers. Land that is known to be contaminated and needs remediation or management to prevent serious health or environmental harm is listed on the Contaminated Land Register (CLR). Listing on either register can affect the value of a property and the ability of landholders to sell or develop.

Landowners can have land removed from the registers if they can establish that the land is not contaminated, or can remediate contamination to a level where it can be considered suitable for any “reasonable future use”. Landowners need to engage a suitably qualified professional (SQP) to assess or remediate the land and to prepare a Contaminated Land Investigation Document (CLID) stating the site’s suitability for the proposed use. As of 30 September 2015, it is mandatory to have an approved contaminated land auditor review the CLID; the auditor’s role is to either certify or refute the site suitability statement in the CLID.

Approved auditors provide expert advice on contaminated land regulations, assessment, management and remediation of contaminated sites. Geo-Logix staff are SQP’s, and its director, David Gregory, is a registered contaminated site auditor in Queensland, New South Wales, the Northern Territory and ACT.