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BEAM PLUS FOR NEW B UILDINGS SITE A SPECTS (S A)
V ERSION 1.2 SA 1 CONTAMINATED LAND
Copyright © 2012 BEAM Society Limited. All rights reserved.
Page 32
to planning permission, or as special conditions in relevant land-title
documents for cases associated with potential land contamination
problems, it is a good practice to carry out an investigation of site
contamination on developed or reclaimed land to eliminate any risk or
hazard arising from potential land contamination. Technical particulars
on how a detailed site assessment should be conducted, and should be
made reference to the “Guidance Manual for Use of Risk-based
Remediation Goals for Contaminated Land Management” [3] and the
“Guidance Notes for Investigation and Remediation of Contaminated
Sites of Petrol Filling Station, Boatyards and Car Repair/Dismantling
Workshops” [4].
Hong Kong is running out of landfill space due to the continued growth of
waste. Excavating the contaminated soil and disposing it of at landfills is
not considered as an environmentally responsible measure. On-site or
off-site remediation should be employed to restore the site to an
acceptable condition for the proposed use, or to put the treated soil to
good use elsewhere.
It is recognised that building developments on land adjacent to landfill
sites may be affected by migrating landfill gas and/or leachate unless
specific precautions are taken to control the potential hazards. The
Practice Note [2] sets out the conditions when a landfill gas hazard
assessment may be required and provides general guidelines on how
such an assessment should be undertaken. A Guidance Note [ 5 ]
describes in more detail of the process which should be followed in
evaluating the risks and designing appropriate protection measures. The
Guidance Note is not intended to provide comprehensive guidance on all
aspects of risk assessment or design of precautionary/protection
measures, but rather to give general guidance on important issues such
as the factors to be considered when assessing the level of risk and the
procedures which should be followed in undertaking the assessment.
3 Environmental Protection Department. Guidance Manual for Use of Risk-based Remediation Goals for Contaminated Land
Management.
4 Environmental Protection Department. Guidance Notes for Investigation and Remediation of Contaminated Sites of Petrol
Filling Station, Boatyards and Car Repair/Dismantling Workshops.
5 Environmental Protection Department. Landfill Gas Hazard Assessment.