Contaminated land

Sometimes what looks like a "just a paddock" could have had a previous use. It may have been intensively sprayed with fertilisers or pesticides, or be located next to land which is used differently and where contaminants have spread from. These scenarios are common in the Bay of Plenty.

This means that before you build a new home it is important to identify if the current or previous use of the land could have contaminated the soils. You want to check so your new back garden where your family will play and possibly grow plants and vegetables isn't actually contaminated.

Under the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA), regional councils are responsible for identifying and monitoring land that may be contaminated.

To support the identification of land that may be contaminated, the Ministry for the Environment (MfE) has created a list of activities and industries that are likely to cause land contamination. This list is called the Hazardous Activities and Industries List (most commonly referred to as the HAIL) and is meant to identify most situations in New Zealand where hazardous substances could cause land contamination.

At Bay of Plenty Regional Council, information about contaminated land is recorded on the Land Use Register. Details about a specific property can be requested from this register by using our online Land Use Register HAIL Request Form or viewed online via our map gallery.

Please note the Land Use Register is constantly being updated. Not all properties that have, or previously had, an activity/industry identified on the MfE’s HAIL have been necessarily recorded yet. When determining if land is contaminated it is recommended to:

• Find out what the previous activities or industries that took place on the property and neighbouring properties were.
• Check for physical signs of contamination (i.e. odours, stains, evidence of storage tanks etc.).
• Consult the MfE’s HAIL.
• Contact your local district or city council and regional council for any information it may hold about the property.

If your land has been identified as having (or potentially having) an activity or industry from the MfE’s HAIL and is registered on the Regional Councils Land Use Register, it does not necessarily mean that it is contaminated. Instead it means that it has historically or is currently being used for an activity or industry that could result in contamination. Living on a HAIL site does not mean your health or the quality of the environment around it is affected.

When land is identified and added to the register it is assigned one of seven categories:

1. Verified Non-HAIL – information shows that the property has not been associated with any of the activities or industries on the HAIL.
2. Unverified HAIL - information suggests an activity or industry on the HAIL has occurred, however the reported use has not been confirmed.
3. Verified HAIL Site - information suggests an activity or industry on the HAIL has occurred and the use has been confirmed, but there is insufficient information to quantify adverse effects or risks to people or the environment from the known activity or industry.
4. At or below background – the property has been investigated or remediated, with the investigation or post remediation validation results confirming there are no hazardous substances above local background concentrations other than those that occur naturally in the area.
5. Suitable for [specified land use] – the property has been investigated and the results show that there are hazardous substances present at the property but indicate that any adverse effects or risks to people and/or the environment are considered to be so low as to be acceptable.
6. Managed for [specified land use] – the property has been investigated and the results show that there are hazardous substances present at the property in concentrations that have the potential to cause adverse effects or risks to people and/or the environment but these risks are being managed to prevent exposure.
7. Contaminated for [specified land use] – the property has been investigated and the results show that the site has a hazardous substance in or on it, or in groundwater or surface water that has significant adverse effects on human health and/or the environment; and/or is reasonably likely to have significant adverse effects on human health and/or the environment

Specified land use scenarios include:

• Rural residential
• Residential
• High density residential
• Industrial/Commercial
• Recreational
• Agricultural
• Other

Unfortunately, Regional Council is unable to remove any properties from the Land Use Register. It is important that we keep the information on file as an audit system so we can make sure the same property is not re-identified in the future.

Regional Council makes every effort to accurately identify the location, extent and relevant information about each property registered on the Land Use Register. If you have information (such as a preliminary site investigation, detailed site investigation, or other records) that clearly show your property has not had a past hazardous activity, please let us know so we can verify this. Please also let us know if other hazardous activities have occurred which we have not listed.

If we have incorrectly identified a hazardous activity or industry on your property, we will verify the information provided and work with you to change the classification accordingly. Regional Council retains the information on file so we can make sure that the same site is not re-identified in the future. It will still be visible on our online maps.