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Request information on contaminated sites or soil protection cadastre

Service Description

Sites suspected of being contaminated are, on the one hand, properties of decommissioned companies/plants and other properties on which environmentally hazardous substances have been handled (old sites) and, on the other hand, properties of decommissioned waste disposal plants and other properties on which waste has been treated, stored or deposited (old deposits) and for which there is thus a suspicion of hazardous pollutant contamination of the soil. Such properties are designated as contaminated sites if investigations have proven the presence of hazardous soil contamination.

In Thuringia, areas suspected of being contaminated and contaminated sites are recorded in a cadastre. This cadastre is called "THALIS" (Thuringian Contaminated Sites Information System).

Property owners or persons with a legitimate interest require information for various reasons as to whether a property is suspected of being contaminated. For this purpose, you can submit an application for information from the register of contaminated sites to the responsible authority. For example, you can inquire whether a certain property is registered there. However, written information is subject to a fee.

Process flow

If you want to know whether official information on contaminated sites or harmful soil changes is available for a property, submit an application for information from the register of contaminated sites.

The corresponding application form with the necessary information is forwarded to the competent authority in whose area of responsibility the property in question is located.

You will then receive notification from the authority as to whether the property in question is registered in the register of contaminated sites and what information is recorded there. Since the register of contaminated sites is continuously updated, this information on contaminated sites represents the current status; the right to make subsequent changes is reserved.

Who should I contact?

Please contact the Lower Soil Protection Authority of the district (or the independent city) in which the property in question is located.

In Thuringia, the lower soil protection authorities are responsible for dealing with contaminated sites. They may also have expert reports and investigation reports for the property. In addition, these authorities can often provide information on how urgent the suspected contaminated site is, whether all parts of the property are equally affected by the suspicion and how high any investigation and remediation costs will be. It is also possible that an update or cleanup of the cadastre will be carried out in the course of your inquiry.

Requirements

If you are not the owner of the property for which you are requesting information from the register of contaminated sites, you must enclose a power of attorney from the property owner with the application.

Which documents are required?

An application is necessary, which requires the following information:

  • Your name and address,
  • the exact designation with address and/or district, parcel and land parcel number of the parcel in question,
  • attach a site plan if necessary
  • attach a power of attorney from the owner of the land if the land is not your property.

If the applicant is not the owner of the land: power of attorney of the owner of the land.

What are the fees?

If information is provided in writing, the authority is required by law to charge processing fees. These are assessed according to the time spent. However, the fees must be at least € 5.00 and may not exceed € 500.00.

What deadlines do I have to pay attention to?

There are no deadlines to be observed when submitting an application, the information can be requested at any time.

However, if you do not agree with the THALIS information provided or the costs charged for it, you must lodge an objection within one month of receipt of the decision.

Processing duration

Information is usually provided within one month.

Legal basis

Applications / forms

If you do not agree with the THALIS information provided or the costs charged for it, you can file an objection with the authority that issued the information notice. In doing so, certain deadlines must be observed (see above under "What deadlines must I observe?").

Appeal

  • Online procedure possible: in planning
  • Written form required: yes
  • Personal appearance required: no

The application can be made informally. Special forms are not required. However, the application must contain at least the following information:

  • Name and address of the applicant
  • Parcel(s) of land for which the information is requested
  • Declaration by the applicant that he/she will bear the processing costs incurred.

It is also helpful to provide a telephone number and/or e-mail address so that the authority can contact you more quickly in the event of queries.

What else should I know?

  • Everyone has the right to obtain information from the THALIS. However, the authority is required by law to charge for written information. To avoid discrepancies, it is therefore advisable to ask the authority what the costs will be before submitting an application.
  • The information provided to you is based on information from the current register of contaminated sites. The register of contaminated sites is updated on an ongoing basis, and we reserve the right to make changes and updates. No guarantee is given for the topicality and completeness of the contaminated site register and the information provided.
  • Many of the facts commonly referred to as "contaminated sites", such as ruined buildings, contaminated building fabric, asbestos cladding and roofs, waste left on properties (e.g. barrels or containers with hazardous contents), found ammunition, unexploded bombs, car wrecks and even larger deposits of non-hazardous waste (such as uncontaminated building rubble or excavated earth, car tires, etc.) are not contaminated sites within the meaning of the law.
  • Soil contaminated with pollutants may also be present on properties that are not or are no longer included in the THALIS. In fact, facilities in operation do not fall under the legal definition of contaminated sites, even if hazardous soil contamination is present there. In addition, all those plots of land are deleted from the THALIS where the soil contamination is so minor that the current use of the land is possible without danger. However, as soon as the property in question is to be used in a more sensitive manner (e.g. as a children's play area, for residential purposes, as a garden, etc.), the suspicion of contamination may revive. In addition, excavation work on such properties may incur increased disposal costs.

Résumé:

Even if a property is not or no longer registered in THALIS, the property value may be significantly diminished for various other reasons. In addition, significant costs for waste disposal, demolition of buildings and remediation of soil contamination may also be incurred in this case.

Author

The text was automatically translated based on the German content per DeepL.

Technically approved by

Thuringian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Conservation

Professionally released on

04.10.2021

Source: Zuständigkeitsfinder Thüringen (Linie6PLus)

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