Railways and associated infrastructure are widespread across the country with numerous activities that have the potential to contaminate the surrounding environment.
Around railway operations, contamination has the potential to be found along rail lines, maintenance depots, stations, engineering works, rail sidings and marshalling yards. The activities undertaken within these areas often included fuel storage and handling, maintenance, waste disposal, treatment of timber and weed control along rail lines. Asbestos is also a contaminate of concern, being used within brake pads of the trains and shown to accumulate within the ballast fines around the yards, corners and at stations in areas along the line braking was required. In addition historic railways were commonly associated with fuel depots gasworks and the transportation of other dangerous goods to supply regional areas.
As a result of these past activities, soil and ballast on railway sites may potentially be contaminated with hydrocarbons, PAHs, heavy metals, solvents, asbestos-containing materials, pesticides, PCBs and contamination from ash/fill materials. Based on the nature of contamination, these contaminants have the potential to impact groundwater and surrounding properties.
With a Land Insight Enviro-Due Diligence Report, any railway operations within your study area are identified and mapped clearly giving you the information you need to evaluate the risk of contamination.