Normal Contaminant Concentrations in English Soils

2026-03-11 updated guidance from the British Geological Survey defines 'normal' contaminant levels in English soils for regulatory support. The data is served as a Web Map Service (WMS) with domain polygons, produced under commission from Defra.

Use Cases

• Analyze soil contamination domain polygons to identify regional exceedances of 'normal' contaminant levels.
• Support Part 2A Contaminated Land Statutory Guidance revision using the BGS-defined contaminant concentration thresholds.
• Integrate WMS polygon layers with other geospatial data for environmental risk assessment in England.

Strengths

• Produced by the authoritative British Geological Survey (BGS) under commission from Defra.
• Updated on 2026-03-11, indicating recent maintenance.
• Specifically designed to support statutory guidance for contaminated land in England.

Limitations

• Data scope is limited to English soils, not applicable to other UK nations or international contexts.
• Available only as a WMS, limiting direct quantitative analysis without data extraction.
• No tabular column or sample data is provided for detailed statistical modeling.

Provenance

Source

British Geological Survey (BGS)

Collection Method

Commissioned work by Defra to provide guidance on normal contaminant concentrations.

Time Range

null

Freshness

Updated 2026-03 11.

Geography

England