Brownfield and Contaminated Land: Why WAC Testing Should Be Non‑Negotiable

Brownfield and previously developed land often deliver the biggest planning wins, but they can also carry the highest waste risks. Historic fill, industrial processes, made ground and unknown backfill mean you are rarely dealing with simple natural soils. In this context, skipping detailed Waste Acceptance Criteria work is rarely a wise saving.

On contaminated sites, the first step is always a robust desk study and ground investigation to define the contamination regime. That work feeds into waste classification, allowing you to separate hazardous from non‑hazardous material in line with WM3. However, classification alone will not tell you whether apparently suitable soils actually meet landfill acceptance limits.

WAC Testing provides that missing piece. By focusing on leachability, sulphate behaviour, organic content and other landfill‑relevant parameters, WAC testing identifies which materials can safely enter inert or non‑hazardous cells and which must either be treated or directed to specialist hazardous facilities.

EnviroSolution’s contaminated land specialists link investigation design, classification and WAC Testing into a single strategy. We target samples on likely worst‑case materials, advise on segregation of clean and impacted soils, and provide clear schedules of expected disposal routes so commercial teams can price work with confidence.

On complex brownfield schemes, the question is not whether you can afford to undertake WAC Testing – it is whether you can afford not to.