Why soil contamination matters
A site that looks like clean sand can still hide fuel, pesticides, heavy metals or asbestos from its past use. In the UAE, much of today’s development land was once a farm, a nursery, a labour camp, a workshop or a storage yard. If that soil is contaminated and nobody checks, the risk passes to the people who will live and work there, and the cost passes to whoever owns the land when it is found.
A soil contamination survey answers one question before construction starts: is this soil safe for the planned use, and if not, what must be done? In Abu Dhabi, this now has a firm legal footing after the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD) issued two resolutions in January 2025.
What a soil contamination survey involves
- Define the land use: residential, commercial/industrial or agricultural. Each has its own limits.
- Desk study and site walkover: past land use, stained soil, odours, stockpiles, buried tanks and surface asbestos.
- Sampling: surface samples and boreholes to excavation depth, with piezometers if groundwater may be affected.
- Laboratory testing: heavy metals, hydrocarbons, VOCs, PCBs, pesticides, asbestos and more.
- Comparison with limits: results below the limits mean no further action; results above them lead to a detailed assessment and a remediation plan.
Rules and standards in the UAE
Soil contamination is governed at federal level and, in more detail, by each emirate. In Abu Dhabi, the key documents are:
Instrument | Issued by | What it does |
Federal Law No. 24 of 1999 on the Protection and Development of the Environment | UAE Federal Government | Framework law. Prohibits activities that pollute the soil and makes the polluter liable for the cost of treatment or removal. |
EAD Resolution on assessment and management of soil contamination risks (Jan 2025) | EAD | Sets the procedure for preliminary and detailed risk assessment, and for mitigation or environmental action plans where soil is polluted. Linked to EIAs and environmental licences. |
EAD Regulation on soil quality (Jan 2025) | EAD | Sets soil quality obligations for licensed facilities and projects, and gives EAD powers to monitor, inspect and audit compliance. |
ADS 19/2017, Environmental Specification for Soil Contamination | Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council | Screening and clean-up limits for residential/open space, commercial/industrial and agricultural use. |
Soil Contamination User Guide (2018) | EAD | Step-by-step method for site assessment, sampling and reporting. |
Who typically needs a survey
In practice, any Abu Dhabi project needing an EIA or environmental licence should expect soil quality to be checked. Testing should be done by an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory.
- Developers building homes, schools or community facilities on former farms, nurseries or industrial plots
- Contractors on roads and infrastructure, where the consultant requires a survey before excavation
- Industrial facilities and fuel stations applying for, renewing or closing an EAD licence
- Buyers, sellers and lenders checking liability in a land deal
How CGT can help
In September 2025, together with our partner ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory, we carried out a soil contamination survey for a roads and infrastructure project in Al Ain, ahead of residential development. The land had previously held plant nurseries, so pesticide, herbicide and fertiliser residues were a real possibility. We surveyed the site, drilled boreholes, installed piezometers to check groundwater, and tested soil samples for more than 30 parameters, including heavy metals, BTEX, benzo[a]pyrene, PCBs, pesticides, herbicides, cyanide and asbestos.
Our services cover:
- Desk study, drilling, sampling and groundwater monitoring
- Laboratory testing with proper sample handling
- Reporting against ADS 19/2017 and EAD requirements
- Remediation plans if limits are exceeded, linked to your EIA or CEMP
Planning a development on land with an unknown past? Contact us at info@cgteng.com before excavation starts, when answers are cheapest.