Over 45,000 potentially contaminated land sites identified across Wales

More than 45,000 potentially contaminated land sites have been identified across Wales, according to new research by Friends of the Earth Cymru.

The environmental campaign group says the hidden legacy of Wales’s industrial past could pose serious risks to people, water and wildlife and is calling for a public inquiry and additional funding for councils to investigate polluted sites.

The charity’s research combined Freedom of Information requests to all 22 Welsh councils with publicly available data, revealing a total of 45,157 sites. Only 18 councils responded, meaning the true figure could be even higher.

Despite the scale of potential contamination, just 82 sites have been formally designated as such across Wales.

Campaigners say that means thousands of sites remain unexamined, some of which sit beneath homes, schools, parks and nature areas.

The investigation found that:

Only six councils publish a full contaminated land register online.

Fifteen councils have an inspection strategy, but just four have updated it in the past five years.

One inspection strategy dates back to 2002, while the most recent was published this year.

In some cases, councils admitted they had identified sites that should appear on their registers but had not published the information. One council told campaigners it had no contaminated land, while also revealing 18 potentially contaminated sites that it lacked the funds to investigate.

Patchy monitoring

Friends of the Earth Cymru says patchy monitoring leaves the public in the dark about the safety of land in their communities.

Spokesperson Kirsty Luff said: “We must make sure the land beneath our feet is safe for people and wildlife. It’s shocking that so much land could be contaminated and yet isn’t being properly inspected. Without proper investigation, these sites remain a mystery – a hidden toxic legacy from our industrial past that could still be harming communities today.”

She added that councils were legally obliged to identify and assess contaminated land but lacked the resources to do so, and urged joint action from both the Welsh and UK governments.

Friends of the Earth Cymru is calling for a public inquiry into the scale and impact of contaminated land, alongside fresh funding to help councils investigate and remediate affected sites.

In response, the Welsh Government said: “Local authorities in Wales have a duty to identify contaminated land within their areas. If they identify areas that meet the definition of ‘contaminated land’, they have a duty to ensure it is remediated appropriately.”