Soil

Soil Remediation under the Environment and Planning Act

The EPA's entry into force entails a substantial overhaul of soil law. From 1 January 2024, the rules on soil protection are no longer laid down in the Soil Protection Act (Wet bodembescherming) but can now be found in, for example, the Environmental Activities Decree (Besluit activiteiten leefomgeving) and the municipal physical environment plan. The EPA has also brought about some substantive changes, for example with regard to the obligation to remediate the soil in historical cases of contamination and the duties of care to be met, as well as in the areas of earth-moving operations and the use of soil and dredging spoil. These changes may affect daily operations.

Our Soil factsheet briefly discusses the state of soil law today and explains the main practical differences between the old and new law.