When you are going to start building on a plot of land, one of the most important things that you must do before you begin is to make sure that there is nothing contaminating the ground. If there is, you will need to get a specialist, such as this Contaminated Land Remediation company soilfix.co.uk in to clear it up before you can begin building. Here are just a few things that will need to be cleared before building can be done…

Asbestos – This is something that was widely used in building, especially just after the war, but when it came to light the dangers of it it was stopped. However, it is still found in many buildings and in some of the land around the UK and must be removed by an expert.

Radioactive Substances – These of course are extremely toxic, and some take hundreds of years to break down. A large example of this contamination is the area around the Chernobyl nuclear plant known as the exclusion zone which is heavily contaminated with radioactive substances.

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Gases – Some gases are naturally occurring in the soil and are harmless, but others are the result of the area being contaminated by industry or mining, so it is important to ensure that these are not in the soil before using the land.

Oil – If the site is a place that has previously been used as a transport facility or an industrial site then it is likely to have some oil contamination in the ground. Oil is carcinogenic and it is important to remove it.

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Heavy Metal – Substances such as arsenic and lead are classed as heavy metals and are very toxic. They can cause problems if you are growing vegetables there and eating them and of course can contaminate groundwater.