Waste work
It will cost £ 24 million to rid Shawfield of chromium VI as new data reveals levels of the harmful chemical are five times greater in the area west of Glasgow Road than the east.
It is hoped a phased clean-up operation over the next two to three years will rid the town of the waste.
It will cost £24m to rid Shawfield of chromium VI as new data reveals the harmful chemical is five times greater in the area west of Glasgow Road than the old industrial land to the east.
A report published by South Lanarkshire Council this week shows the extent of the contamination on land that previously housed Whites Chemical Factory.
Chromium VI, often used as a catalyst in the chemical manufacturing industry, is extremely harmful to humans and can cause illnesses such as lung cancer to people who are repeatedly exposed to it.
While a portion of the site - the new Shawfield Industrial Estate - was relieved of chromium VI in 2014, the South Croft Road area is set to be relieved of the chemical in the next two to three years in a programme of works led by Clyde Gateway Urban Regeneration Company.
The report, put before South Lanarkshire councillors at a meeting of the enterprise services committee yesterday, Tuesday, confirmed the Scottish Government will provide £936,000 through the 2016 Vacant and Derelict Land Fund to kick start the work.
It states: “Initial site investigations have been undertaken and have recorded Chromium VI levels up to five times that experienced in phase one site.
“Additional intrusive site investigations have been procured and the results of these investigations will form the remediation strategy and will allow for calibration of similar remediation works to those which were successfully implemented on the phase one site.
“It is estimated that the project cost for phase two works will be £24m and will be delivered in phases over the next two to three years. Vacant and Derelict Land Funding is vital to kick start delivery and leverage in other funding streams.”
Jim Clarke, of Clyde Gateway, told the Reformer public agencies were always aware of the scale of the problems in the phase two site.
He said: “This is part of a long-term 20-year masterplan for Shawfield. It is the second phase of our remediation strategy which is all geared to bringing back to the Shawfield area industry, jobs and commerce.
“We are confident we have the solution [to remediating the site]. It’s now a case of working out the exact costs and working out how to fund that.
“We are exploring every possible opportunity to obtain the funding to get this work done.”
Susan Martin, a member of the Green Party who lives in Rutherglen, welcomed the news that the local authority is committed to remediating the site and finding the necessary £24m.
“The chromium would be better removed and dealt with that way,” she said.
“I know in the past the expense of remediation has always been considered too high and they have covered it up, but it is just leaving a legacy for future generations to deal with.
“Whatever they do must be monitored all the time to make sure it’s not released into the atmosphere.”
Once remediation is completed, infrastructure, drainage and public realm improvements works will be undertaken on the site that will ultimately provide serviced industrial development sites.