This is an HTML version of an attachment to the Freedom of Information request 'RWMAC report on MOD contaminated Land'.

RWMAC ACTION PLAN 
 
Ref.  Main Recommendations 
Current Position 
1. 
The LQA programme needs to be made more 
• Defence 
Infrastructure 
Organisation (DIO) manage a single 
transparent, with clearer arrangements for 
MOD wide prioritised LQA programme. Having one 
recording the progress of schemes and assessing 
organisation managing the programme has improved 
future plans and progress. 
transparency, monitoring of progress and planning. 
 
•  The LQA process is set out in MOD Defence Estates 
Practitioners Guide PG 01/07 – Contaminated Land 
Management: Land Quality Assessment (LQA) Management 
Guide http://www.mod.uk/NR/rdonlyres/9BB69BE9-6218-
4F06-9139-BB605C38B2C7/0/pg0107.pdf  

 
2. 
The funding arrangements for the LQA programme 
•  Funding responsibility for the MOD LQA programme now sits 
would benefit from being simplified and given higher 
with DIO. 
priority in the allocation of MOD resources. 
3. 
Procedural documentation relating to the 
•  The LQA Practitioners Guide is currently undergoing a major 
programme should be subject to regular review. 
review with publication scheduled for early 2012.  
4. 
The responsibilities of those managing remediation 
•  Environmental Protection Act 1990 Part 2A was extended to 
work should be clearly spelt out (successful 
cover radioactive contaminated land in 2006 and sets out the 
remediation should not be dependent on the 
responsibilities for managing remediation work. 
involvement and personal knowledge of a few 
•  The LQA Practitioners Guide sets out the MOD process for 
particular individuals). 
assessing land contamination risks and managing any 
necessary remediation work 
•  The LQA programme is managed by in-house Environmental 
Specialists ensuring a consistent approach to managing 
remediation 
5. 
This definition of responsibilities must include 
• See 

- 1 - 

Ref.  Main Recommendations 
Current Position 
specific provision for involving relevant branches of 
 
the environmental regulators, and identifying their 
responsibilities, and also provide for the LPA to be 
brought in at the appropriate time 

MOD as the original polluter and a responsible 
•  Since the Report MOD disposal policy has changed to 
Government Department, must itself ensure that 
ensure that arrangements are in place for the remediation of 
whatever form of site disposal is employed, the land 
radioactive contamination. 
is cleaned up to an adequate standard. 
 
•  Through the LQA process the land condition is known and 
the split of responsibility of each party to the transaction with 
regard to current and future land contamination is agreed on 
sale. 
 

MOD should not allow arrangements to be made for 
• See 

the sell-off of land without remediation  where there 
is no downstream control over the quality of the 
remediation work to be carried out. 

This requires that, in all cases, DE is armed with the 
•  DIO has access to appropriate RPA through both DSTL 
necessary expertise to ensure the eventual quality 
(formerly part of DERA) and Specialist Environmental 
of clean-up work.  DERA RPS is the obvious source 
Consultants. 
of much of this expertise.  If DERA-RPS is not 
used, DE must ensure that suitable alternative 
sources of expertise are available for use 

MOD should be as clear as is reasonably possible 
•  An LQA database has been established. As at Oct 2011 it 
about its contaminated land holdings, and should 
held 5370 reports. 
set up a database for this purpose (drawing on LQA 
findings and on previous site investigation records, 
including desk studies and other land quality data).  
- 2 - 

Ref.  Main Recommendations 
Current Position 
At the time of finalising this report (May 2000) the 
Ministry indicated that it was in the process of 
developing such a database. 
10 
Not least this database should be used to compile 
•  Information is extracted from LQAs to inform future radium 
as accurate an estimate as possible of future 
disposals to Drigg 
radium disposals to Drigg 
11 
MOD should ensure possibly in conjunction with 
•  The LQA database holds copies of reports produced for past 
other Government departments, that existing 
and present landholdings. 
records of characterisation and remediation of its 
past and present landholdings are not lost 
12 
MOD should give thought to the feasibility of 
•  The introduction of EPA 1990 Part 2A places the 
compiling information on disposals of land predating 
responsibility for inspecting land with the local authority to 
the LQA programme, where radioactive 
identify land contamination. 
contamination might have been involved. 
13 
The Ministry should commission work to establish 
•  Complete – Commissioned work is published in the Journal 
with more certainty, the extent to which buried 
of radiological protection vol.25 (2005) pg127-140  Adrian 
radium is immobile in all soil and ground conditions. 
Baker and Catherine Toque  - A review of the potential for 
radium for luminising activities to migrate in the environment.  
14 
The Government, more generally, should revisit its 
•  No direct action by MOD 
conclusion that where a change of use is proposed, 
the current planning system alone can ensure an 
adequate standard of clean-up. 
15 
RWMAC also believes that MOD should give 
•  The extension of EPA 1990 Part 2A to cover radioactive 
consideration to the potential for correlation, and, as 
contamination, addresses this recommendation 
far as possible, ensuring consistency of treatment, 
between its procedures for dealing with radioactive 
and non-radioactive contamination. 
 
- 3 - 

Document Outline