| Have you ever wondered who is responsible for | | | | from Bawtry and District Gas Company and |
| contaminated land when the original polluter no | | | | South Yorkshire and Derbyshire Gas Company to |
| longer occupies or owns the land? The current | | | | the British Gas Corporation. The site was later |
| position of the law is that the polluter who caused | | | | sold to Kenton Homes Ltd and then to Kenneth |
| or knowingly permits the contamination of the | | | | Jackson Ltd, which applied for and obtained |
| land should pay for the remediation caused by his | | | | planning permission to build houses on the site. |
| actions. However, if the polluter can no longer be | | | | Following this eleven residences were built , seven |
| traced, then the owner or occupier of the | | | | of which were, for a time, owned by the |
| contaminated land in question may be classified as | | | | Secretary of State for Defense but subsequently |
| an appropriate person regarding the remediation | | | | all eleven passed into private ownership. According |
| of the contamination. | | | | to the section 78F of the Environment Act, |
| The issue of an appropriate person was raised in | | | | Bawtry and District Gas Company and South |
| the National Grid Gas Plc case, where the polluters | | | | Yorkshire and Derbyshire Gas Company, and East |
| could not be traced and the Environment Agency | | | | Midlands Gas Board were classified as appropriate |
| exercised it discretion not to pursue any of the | | | | persons, as were Kenton Homes Ltd and Kenneth |
| current owners or occupiers on the contaminated | | | | Jackson Ltd for knowingly permitting the |
| land. Rather the agency directed its cost recovery | | | | contamination to remain. But all these companies |
| efforts against National Grid Gas Plc (previously | | | | have been dissolved! The present owners and |
| Transco), being a company which had been | | | | occupiers of the eleven residences could also be |
| established as part of the corporate reorganization | | | | classified as appropriate persons but the |
| of British Gas Plc a few years after the | | | | Environment Agency decided not to pursue them, |
| privatisation of the Gas industry. This was based | | | | rather they decided to pursue the National Grid |
| on the argument that the person who caused or | | | | Gas Plc based on the proposition that the statute |
| knowingly permitted the contamination should be | | | | includes every person who became by statute |
| construed to include every person who became | | | | the successor to the liabilities of the actual |
| by statue the successor to the liabilities of the | | | | polluters. |
| actual polluter. | | | | The courts held that National Grid Gas Plc had not |
| The history behind this case was that Bawtry and | | | | itself caused or knowingly permitted the presence |
| District Gas Company and South Yorkshire and | | | | of the contaminating substances, since it had only |
| Derbyshire Gas Company constructed the gas | | | | come into existence 20 years after the site had |
| works on the site that caused the pollution. The | | | | been sold for housing; and there is nothing in the |
| gas industry was then nationalised by the Gas Act | | | | Act to impose on a company innocent of any |
| 1948 which provided that all property, rights, | | | | polluting activity a liability to pay for remediation |
| liabilities and obligations of Bawtry and District Gas | | | | of the contamination caused by a polluter. Despite |
| Company and South Yorkshire and Derbyshire | | | | being the statutory successor to the original |
| Gas Company be brought under the ownership | | | | polluters, National Grid Gas Plc is not an |
| and control of the East Midlands Gas Boards. Gas | | | | appropriate person within the meaning of the Act. |
| production on the site was then discontinued | | | | Thus an appropriate person according to the Act |
| shortly after nationalisation. The Gas Act of 1972 | | | | shall include the original polluters that caused the |
| then transferred the property, rights, liabilities and | | | | contamination, persons who knowingly permit the |
| obligations of the Area Gas Boards to the British | | | | contamination, the current owners or occupiers |
| Gas Corporation. This transferred any liabilities of | | | | where the polluter cannot be identified - but would |
| the East Midlands Gas Board arising out of its | | | | not include the statutory successor of the polluter. |
| previous ownership of the contaminated site or | | | | This article is free to republish provided this |
| inherited under section 17(1) of the 1948 Act | | | | resource box remains intact. |