Land contamination is when liquid or solid waste enters the land or groundwater. It is usually from industrial or commercial sites or landfills. Land contamination doesn't move much unless there is shallow groundwater, so it's usually only a problem in localised areas. Environmental audits are a way of making sure land is safe for its use.
Number of environmental audits done in Victoria
Source: EPA Victoria Note: 53X Audits completed between 2000 and 2018 under the EPA managed audit scheme.
Source: EPA Victoria
Note: Measured by number of environmental audits
year to assess suitability for proposed use
The effect on your health
Eating contaminated soil or drinking contaminated groundwater may affect your health.
If contamination from land gets into rivers, lakes or groundwater, it can move some distance and may even get into drinking water sources such as bore water.
Sometimes, certain chemicals in contaminated soil and groundwater can create gases that can enter buildings. This is called vapour intrusion. Breathing in these vapours can be unhealthy.
What can I do?
- Keep children from playing in soil in and around industrial and commercial properties.
- If you drink water from a groundwater bore, regularly check for chemical contamination. Check with your local water authority about how to do this.
- If you are worried about exposure to land contamination, learn what you can do to protect your health here.
- Report suspected land or water contamination
Find out more
- Understand site history and potential land contamination with Victoria Unearthed.
- Groundwater pollution
- Contaminated land environmental auditing