Contaminated Land - Kelvin Avenue former landfill site
In 2000, Part 2A of the 1990 Environmental Protection Act came
into force,requiring councils to check for sites which may meet the
legal definition of 'contaminated land'. The Kelvin Avenue
former landfill is currently used as a public open space with a
community centre. It is therefore considered to be a
sensitive site.
Former Landfill: Kelvin Avenue
The site is situated in Middleton, centred on National Grid
Reference (NGR) 384532 404933 and comprises a Public Open Space
(POS) with a community centre, residential houses to the north,
east and west and the M60 to the south. The site was identified as
being high priority due to the potential for landfill gas
generation and migration, the site is also situated on a rock type
which water can be extracted for domestic and commercial use. We
were successful in our application to the EA for funding to
undertake an investigation in November 2011.
Background
The site was mainly farmland until the early 20th century, the
first signs of infilling is evident from historical maps from the
1900’s, there was a sewage works situated on the site from the
1900’s to the 1950’s. Landfilling was undertaken in the post-war
period and appears to have been completed by the 1960’s when the
community centre was built. When the motorway was built a large
portion of the landfill was re-located, however the area around
Kelvin Avenue remained in place, this area will be
investigated.
Investigation
The investigation will involve installing a number of boreholes
and excavating a number of hand dug pits around the site to assess
the ground conditions and take samples for analysis. The
investigation will be followed by a six month monitoring period to
monitor ground gases and water; conclusions can then be drawn on
whether an environmental risk is present on the site or if further
investigation is required.
The site works have now been completed and the six month
monitoring period has begun, local residents and other interested
parties will be informed of the results of the investigation when
it has been completed.