Contaminated land case study - Runcorn

Halton Borough Council has begun taking soil samples from 52 properties in Runcorn to establish whether the land is affected by contamination.

The investigation, which will concentrate on properties in Needham Close, is taking place because the homes are all situated on the site of a former tannery, which dates back to 1849. Records show that the area was also used as a scrap metal works in the 1970’s, before houses were constructed on the site in the 1990’s.

The Council has stated that the testing period should last a couple of weeks and results will be available by June, but worried residents are already concerned about the effect any contamination may have on the value of their properties. One resident said: ‘We can’t understand why it has taken so long for this to come to light. If they find something, we want compensation for the drop in the price of our homes’.

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