The huge costs of moving soil to and from construction sites has resulted in the growing popularity of ‘soil dating’ across the UK, something that HBPW is now playing a key role in supporting and facilitating.
Many projects need to import or export materials in order to achieve required levels or an earthworks balance and, whether a site is a potential ‘donor’ or ‘receiver’, there is a resource for balancing materials via a project partner.
HBPW Geoenvironmental Engineer, Jay Fox, a ‘Qualified Person’, under the 2011 CL:AIRE Code of Practice, which oversees the Register of Materials, says the Register seeks to put materials donors and receivers in touch.
“It contains information such as the location, availability, type, quantity, provenance and quality of available earthworks materials. Not many people are aware that this ‘soil dating service’ exists to assist developers in reducing costs associated with materials and waste. The sustainability opportunities are also significant,” said Jay.
The Register of Materials was born out of the CL:AIRE Definition of Waste: Development Industry Code of Practice, often simply referred to as ‘the CoP’. Now in its Second Version ’the CoP’ provides a procedure for re-using contaminated and/or clean excavated materials in construction without the requirement for waste related exemptions or permits.
The following re-use scenarios are now available;
- re-using excavated materials (contaminated or clean) on the site of origin
- direct transfer to another site (uncontaminated natural materials only)
- sharing materials between sites via a ‘Cluster’ system or by using a fixed soils treatment facility.
This process can be used to avoid contaminated and even hazardous materials ever becoming a waste. HBPW can manage the whole materials assessment process as Jay is a registered Qualified Person.
CL:AIRE offer to connect donors and receivers. As soon as development or remediation is planned details can be confidentially submitted to CL:AIRE who then identify any potential synergies with other registered schemes and members. Although, a free service, CL:AIRE, a charity, ask to discuss reasonable voluntary donations, proportional to project financial success.
Get in touch with Jay if you want to know more. His email is j.fox@hbpwconsulting.co.uk