Jo Strange of Card Geotechnics is a chartered civil engineer and environmentalist and also a specialist in land condition (SiLC). Her specialist fields are land contamination, remediation and landfill gas.
Ms Strange has been involved in monitoring of landfills and design of gas control systems, in addition to carrying out assessments of soil gases and associated risk assessments and design of gas protection solutions for commercial and residential developments.
She will be speaking at Brownfield Briefing's Ground Gas 2009 conference on 18 November, so we aught up with her ahead of the event.
1. What do you predict will be major brownfield issues in 2020?
It may not be brownfield per se, but with respect to groundwater contamination, I think in the future that mine waters are a time bomb waiting to happen.
Japanese Knotweed will also cause bigger headaches to developers.
Depending on how the European Soil Directive progresses, we may all be doing something completely different yet again.
2. If you could choose one regeneration project that you could magically complete right now, which would it be and why?
Had you asked me in 2008, I would have said Liverpool ONE, as that is my home city, which is often sadly maligned, but is a great place and deserved the make over that this regeneration project provided.
For 2009, it has to be the Olympic Park, so that all the facilities could be completed and test run in advance. It is essential for the UK brownfield and construction industries that the work is completed and the promised environmental improvements delivered so that the 2012 Olympics run smoothly with no risk of last minute construction or logistical glitches in full view of the rest of the world and lasting legacy remains for the residents of East London and people of Britain.
3. What do you think are the three biggest brownfield developments/ achievements from this year?
The on-going publication of SGVs is the start of an achievement provided the production continues.
The ruling against Corby Borough Council may have repercussions across the brownfield industry; that remains to be seen.
Hopefully better H&S awareness and procedures in the wake of the tragic fatal accident to an engineer from Cotswold Engineering. Not an achievement, but a sad reality check.
4. If you could change one piece of legislation/regulation what would it be and why?
I would wish to see changes to the waste definition and legislation which allow sensible re-use of materials between sites without requiring environmental permits, in order to maximise recycling of soils rather than disposal or needless pseudo processing.
