Environment Agency issues ecological risk assessment methodology

The first methodology in the UK for assessing risk to ecological receptors from contaminated land was published by the Environment Agency this week. The methodology is designed to establish whether pollutant linkages are likely to exist between contamination and designated ecological receptors, and to gather information for making decisions regarding whether harm to receptors is occurring or could occur in the future. The framework consists of a three-stage process: a comparison of chemical analyses of site soils with soil screening values; the use of various tools, such as bioassays and ecological surveys, to gather evidence of harm; and guidance on the attribution of cause and effect. As well as the contaminated land regime, the guidance is relevant to planning and pollution control, habitats and conservation regimes and the EU environmental liability Directive.

• Environment Agency guidance