Managing contaminated land

A landowner must, before agreeing to sell or dispose of land listed on the Environmental Management Register (EMR) or Contaminated Land Register (CLR), give written notice to the buyer. The notice must inform the buyer that the land is recorded on the EMR or CLR and provide details of any site management plan (SMP) for the land where applicable.

A landowner also has the obligation to give the buyer written notice should land be the subject of:

• a show cause notice
• an environmental evaluation requiring a site investigation to be conducted
• a notice requiring a SMP to be prepared or advising that a SMP has been prepared for the land
• a clean-up notice
• an order under s.458 of the Environmental Protection Act 1994.

If the landowner does not comply with the above requirements the buyer may rescind the agreement by giving the owner written notice before whichever of the following happens first:

• the completion of the agreement; or
• possession under the agreement.

If a buyer rescinds the agreement, any person who has been paid an amount by the buyer must refund the money paid; and the buyer must return to the owner any documents about the disposal, other than the buyer’s copy of the agreement.

Where a landowner does not give the buyer the required notice before the agreement is signed, they may provide a written notice stating that the buyer can rescind the agreement within 21 business days after receiving the notice. If the buyer does not rescind the agreement within the specified period, they are taken to have waived their right.

Leasing land which is listed on the CLR

If land is listed on the CLR, the landowner has the obligation to:

• notify any lessee that the land has been listed on the CLR within 20 business days
• notify any person who is proposing to lease the land that the land has been listed on the CLR before entering into the lease.

If the owner fails to give this notice the lessee, or the person proposing to lease the land, may terminate the lease by written agreement within 10 business days after becoming aware that the land is listed on the CLR.