A judicial review claim brought by our client, Rev Paul Cawthorne, has been issued by the High Court in Cardiff. The claim challenges the decision of Caerphilly County Borough Council that land at and around the former Ty Llwyd quarry near Ynysddu, Wales, does not meet the legal definition of contaminated land under Part 2A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
The former quarry was used for some years as an industrial waste tip. The waste deposited there is known to include a highly toxic persistent organic pollutant (POP) or “forever chemical” called polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
Whilst our client has been campaigning for many years, concerns about the Ty Llwyd quarry site were highlighted in the recent BBC TV series: Buried with Michael Sheen https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002zkqq
The judicial review claim focuses on three grounds of challenge.
First, that the Council’s conclusion that there was no risk of significant harm to human health was not supported by the evidence. The claim challenges where and how samples were taken, how the results were interpreted, and how the Council assessed who could be exposed to PCBs and by what routes.
Second, the claim argues that the Council misinterpreted government guidance and, as a result, applied the wrong approach in deciding whether the land should be classified as contaminated.
Third, the claim challenges the lawfulness of the process by which the Council delegated, made and communicated its decision.
Alice Goodenough of Goodenough Ring Solicitors acts for Rev Cawthorne and has instructed Alex Goodman KC of Landmark Chambers.