Test Bore Holes

[cuddlepop]

Front page of notice board informs us of possible gases from old landfill site in Castletown .Is there cause for concern here? Are there incidencies of illness,can it be likened to cancer clusters in Ayrshire and Fife,where high voltage plyons life in the middle of housing estates.

[Bill Fernie]

The test bore holes are required to be done to comply with the latest legislation on contaminated land where a land fill site has been used over many years. Although the site at Castletown closed a number of years ago much more stringent European and Uk legislation now means that sites must be checked to find out if all is well below the surface. Checking a site does not mean that anything is wrong. It is in the first instance a health and safety measure and Highland council is required to supply a report on the Castletown site and other sites where they are close to housing. All councils are carrrying out similar checks on landfill sites in their area.

Once upon a time as a society we dumped everything but we now have to deal with that legacy. The bore holes are part of that checking. The Highland Council would be deemed negligent if it did nothing to protect the people of the region from harm.

Information about the topic of contaminated land can be found at
http://www.sepa.org.uk/contaminated-land/extent/2.htm and many other web sites.

There is nothing sinister in carrying out a check on the site. Bore holes are required to check for gas as this moves through the ground and with the correct samples and detection equipment an assessment can be made to determine if there is any or no risk. If there is found to be risk then some form of remediation may be required by a local authority. If nothing is found then nothing will happen until the next time it is checked.

Although these checks are something recent it would be as well to get used to them as they are here to stay and no doubt if you live near a disused quarry or land fill site you will see equipment being set up to carry out tests in the future. It is fairly new at the moment. Hopefully nothing will be found at Castletown and even if it is it will be dealt with. Nothing has changed at the site recently but we will not know until the results are published if there is anything going on underneath.

Undoubtedly as this type of action is new it gets a lot of publicity but it is precautionary rather than a signal that anything is wrong.

[cuddlepop]

Thanks Bill,where is the old landfill site in Castletown?
My granny use to say if we,d done something wrong:it'll come back and haunt you:how true that is.
If they find anything what will be done for the residents saftey?

[cuddlepop]

Castletown was on North Tonight so most of my questions were answered.
Probably be on Grampian too

[phoenix]

Hi cuddlepop, I live in Castletown, the landfill site is at the west end of the village. Its all been filled in, hundreds of trees have been planted there, and all are flourishing, quite often we take our dog a walk there. Its a very nice quiet peaceful spot, theres a few wood carvings of different animals there, a few scultures made from the local flagstone some have carvings on and a couple of picnic tables, youd never know on the surface that it was once a rubbish tip! Hopefully nothing untoward will be found there

[cuddlepop]

Thanks Phoenix,was watching to see if there was any mention of Castletown on the Grampian news but there wasnt,cant be too serious.
Hope council find no evidence of escaping gases,it looks a lovely area from the web site

[Fran]

after reading these posts i am a bit concerned about a letter i received from highlandcouncil stating they want to drill boreholes in my garden for collecting and testing soil samples in my area.
they want to drill one hole using a small tracked rig with a monitoring well installed in the borehole and a small metal cover fitted. the work will take half a day and there will be some noise and disturbance.
If it wasn't for the headed notepaper it was typed on, i would have thought this was a joke.
what is this all about? Have any of you received the same letter?

[JAWS]

I can't see why all this nonsence is required. What a load of fuss when there is a simple solution. All you need is a spade!

Dig a small hole, bend closely over it, stike a match, and if you suddenly find yourself clinging to the top of a tree there's a problem!

Now what's easier than that?

[Chillie]

I can't see why all this nonsence is required. What a load of fuss when there is a simple solution. All you need is a spade!

Dig a small hole, bend closely over it, stike a match, and if you suddenly find yourself clinging to the top of a tree there's a problem!

Now what's easier than that?

Well said jaws I like a wee story that blows yer mind

[Chillie]

after reading these posts i am a bit concerned about a letter i received from highlandcouncil stating they want to drill boreholes in my garden for collecting and testing soil samples in my area.
they want to drill one hole using a small tracked rig with a monitoring well installed in the borehole and a small metal cover fitted. the work will take half a day and there will be some noise and disturbance.
If it wasn't for the headed notepaper it was typed on, i would have thought this was a joke.
what is this all about? Have any of you received the same letter?

Maybe they are trying to tap in for free petrol from Elm Tree

[cuddlepop]

Fran,the community council were meeting last night in Castletown,give one of them a ring.
If they do fined methan is it yours?mr cuddlepop reckons they'll get rid of it by burning it off...
Can we pipe it off so i can accidently blow someone up.,,,,,

[kwbrown111]

I thought they had tested for methane just after they filled it in when they stopped dumping

[cuddlepop]

Methane ,i'm informed builds up over a period of time so wouldn't have been evident at the time of dumping
Does this mean there will be test bores drilled at the council offices as me has heard a rumour thats its full of hot air and gas bags....

[Whitewater]

I can't see why all this nonsence is required. What a load of fuss when there is a simple solution. All you need is a spade!

Dig a small hole, bend closely over it, stike a match, and if you suddenly find yourself clinging to the top of a tree there's a problem!

Now what's easier than that?

Brilliant solution Jaws, I laughed out loud when I read it.