News and Events

After a period of public consultation, the IBN is pleased to publish its finalised Position Statement titled Ireland-specific Good Practice Guidance for the Development of Ground Gas Conceptual Site Models, a copy of which is available here.

A massive thank you to everyone who presented, attended, took park and contributed to the event. The slides can be accessed here.

Come join the Ireland Brownfield Network in its celebration of its 10th anniversary!

Held in Dublin on the 15th September and starting at 9:30am, the event will include expert speakers from the fields of urban regeneration, soil waste and resource management, ground gas risks, and emerging contaminants such as PFAS! Plus, there will be opportunities for face-to-face networking, speak one-to-one with industry leaders, enter a brownfield photographic competition judged by an award-wining photographer, and join in the social event at the end of the day!

Don’t miss your opportunity to secure your place at this prestigious event, as places will be limited. For just €65, you can book your tickets here. Watch this space as further exciting details will be announced very soon!

The Ireland Brownfield Network is pleased to launch its new ‘Early Careers Sub-group’. This group is open to all student, graduate and early career professionals with an interest in brownfield redevelopment in Ireland. The aim of the Early Careers Sub-group is to bring together a network of young professionals involved in, or seeking to be involved in, brownfield redevelopment, and to provide networking opportunities, advice, complementary training options for professional development and ultimately to encourage professional qualifications with relevant bodies. The Early Careers Sub-group will initially be chaired by Rebekka McIlwaine, with Amy Turner acting as Vice-Chair. Anyone interested in getting involved in the committee for the Early Careers Sub-group is encouraged to contact the IBN at here.

As always, all new IBN members (including students, graduates and early career professionals) are welcome; please visit the IBN Join Us page for more information on our free membership.

The Ireland Brownfield Network is pleased to launch, for public consultation, a position statement for Demonstrating Competency in Contaminated Land Lanagement. A copy of the document can be downloaded here.

The document aims to provide an Ireland-based approach for contaminated land practitioners to demonstrate their competency within their particular areas of expertise. This approach is also intended to assist clients, landowners and developers in identifying those individuals capable and competent in the provision of contaminated land management and advisory services.

The IBN is indebted to the Institute of Geologists Ireland, the Institute of Environmental Sciences, CL:AIRE and Specialists in Land Condition Ltd for their detailed and valuable comments of earlier drafts of this document.

The public consultation process will remain open until the 31st January 2021 and any responses, comments and suggestions for improvement can be forwarded to here.

The IBN trust this document is of value to practitioners and looks forward to receiving consultation responses.

The Ireland Brownfield Network is pleased to launch the final draft of the all-Ireland guidance document, 'Management of Asbestos in Soils. An All-Island Guidance Document'. A copy of the document can be downloaded here.

The document covers the compliant management of asbestos in soils on brownfield sites in both jurisdictions and it’s hoped to be the first of many IBN-produced all-Ireland guidance documents designed to benefit practitioners operating throughout the island. The IBN is indebted to Anne-Marie Casey of ESB International for chairing the production of this document and to Paul Nathanail (GHD UK Ltd), Simon Cole (AECOM and SoBRA) and Brian McVeigh (NIEA) for their detailed and valuable comments of earlier drafts.

The IBN trust this document is of value to practitioners and welcomes any comments or questions.

IBN Committee members, Owen Williams and David Kerr, will be presenting at this year's Brownfield and Contaminated Land conference at the Clayton Hotel in Belfast.

This event will bring you the most important and up-to-date information on innovative techniques for the risk assessment and remediation of contaminated land and groundwater, as well as strategies to deliver effective brownfield development within revised planning and policy frameworks in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

There will be presentations by:

• Owen Williams, Freelance Environmental Advisor and Found Chairperson of the IBN
• David Kerr, Principal Environmental Consultant, WYG & IBN Committee Member
• Dermot O’Kane, Town Planner, Belfast City Council
• Emma Walker, Associate Director, Turley
• Hannah Fraser, Director, H Fraser Consulting Ltd
• Brian McVeigh, Senior Scientific Officer - Land & Groundwater Team, NIEA
• Colin Dunsmuir, Senior Consultant, Jacobs
• Malcolm Dowling, Principal Environmental Consultant, Verde Environmental Consultants
• Colin Critchlow, Director, Deep Soil Mixing Ltd
• Chris Johnston, Project Leader, Environment and Renewable Energy, Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute

The full programme is now available here.

Who Should Attend?
This conference is suitable for all those with an interest in contaminated land including Environmental Consultants, Environmental Health Officers, Contaminated Land Officers, Planning Officers, Scientists / Scientific Officers, Engineers, Land Quality / Land Remediation Managers.

Asbestos in soils (AiS) pose significant financial, legal and reputational risks for the management and redevelopment of brownfield lands across the island of Ireland. Unique and varying legal regimes, minimal disposal options and divergent approaches by both practitioners and regulators all conspire to make the management of AiS in Ireland a complex field that can jeopardise redevelopment projects.

The Ireland Brownfield Network (IBN) is currently producing a guidance document to support an all-Ireland approach for the investigation, assessment and management of AiS through referencing existing legislation and industry-led guidance and best practice. The overall aim of this document will be to provide developers and their advisors with a reference guide to explain their legal requirements and identify appropriate mitigation measures to support the safe management and development brownfield land.

The IBN has provided technical response to a range of public consultations most recently The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform National Development Plan 2018-2027 and the EPA Consultation draft guidance document on EPA Licensed Soil Recovery Facilities.

To register your interest with the IBN, email your contact details and affiliation to info@irelandbrownfieldnetwork.com

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