The latest facet of the government’s focus on simplifying planning in
order to stimulate the construction industry has placed a spotlight on the
importance of land evaluation as part of the planning process. New Planning
Guidance for contaminated land / land remediation, released by the Department
for Communities and Local Government, emphasises the importance of undertaking
thorough desk-based research into potential risk from contamination as part of
the planning process, in order to help speed up planning approvals.
When carried out, efficient rigorous research can have a tangible impact
on the speed of planning process and also accurately inform the land
remediation process, ultimately helping deliver developments more quickly than
if thorough due diligence isn’t undertaken during the early stages of planning.
David Mole, Business Development Director, comments: “With activity in the
construction industry now at a three year high*,
the government’s focus on stimulating the industry appears to be working;
improving the planning process is a key factor in continuing to drive this
growth. While we welcome the new guidance from the Department for Communities
and Local Government, it does fall short in some areas and we therefore support
the EIC contaminated land working group in their suggestions to the DCLG that
certain amendments are made, including up-weighting guidance and improving
terminology specific to industry professionals and including reference to
relevant external guidance.
“The provision of poor quality, inaccurate reports can greatly delay the
planning process and incur unnecessary costs for clients, which ultimately can
have a very real impact on the wider economy, both regionally and nationally.
“It is therefore critical that consultants use a reliable system for
their reporting. Our site-specific desktop search, Envirocheck, relied upon by
land and property professionals, is the source of environmental information,
including current and historical mapping and makes a tangible difference to our
clients in terms of delivering reports of the very best quality in a timely
fashion. More-over land and property professionals are now using web-technology
such as Envirocheck Analysis in their workflow processes delivering improved
accuracy and time saving benefits when analysing historical mapping as part of their
land appraisal studies.”
The Envirocheck Report is the industry standard
desk study information service, providing professionals with fast and highly
accurate environmental site assessments. Envirocheck delivers site-specific
information with access to comprehensive Ordnance Survey current and historical
mapping. The historical maps in the Landmark database exceed 1 million map
files from 1840 to present day sourced from Ordnance Survey, Trinity College
(Dublin) and the Royal Geographical Society.
The collection of Ordnance Survey maps is supplemented with RAF
historical aerial photos and Russian Military Cold War mapping of the UK. The Envirocheck Report offers a flexible
solution by allowing professionals to choose the detail they need depending on
their project requirements.
For more information, visit www.envirocheck.co.uk.
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