Two more councils back new contaminated land law

Two Sussex councils have backed a proposed new law to ensure greater transparency over contaminated land.

The law is named after Zane Gbangbola, a seven-year-old boy whose parents say was killed by gas from landfill when the River Thames flooded in Surrey in 2014.

Zane's Law calls for measures including that councils keep public registers of contaminated sites.

Brighton & Hove City Council and Adur District Council both considered the move on Thursday. Lewes council was the first to support the law in February.

Zane's parents, Kye Gbangbola and Nicole Lawler, said: "Our thanks go to the councillors and authorities who are repeatedly unanimous in their compassion and duty to protect their communities from the dangers of toxic landfill and pollution in controlled waters.

"Zane's Law is happily helping to drive momentum for change."

Motions to support Zane's Law were considered at both full council meetings.

Brighton backed the move unanimously, and Adur debated the move which was then referred to the Adur joint strategic sub-committee for determination.

Mr Gbangbola, who was paralysed in the same incident that killed his son, attended both debates.

The couple have said when they bought their Chertsey house, no environmental searches identified the field behind the property was former landfill, and this only came to light after Zane had died.

An inquest into Zane's death concluded he was killed by carbon monoxide from a petrol pump used to clear floodwater from his home in Thameside, but Mr Gbangbola and Ms Lawler say the pump was not used.

They have accessed public health documents that stated firefighters found hydrogen cyanide in their home, but no carbon monoxide.

After Lewes council backed Zane's Law, a government spokesperson said: "This is a tragic case and our thoughts remain with the Gbangbola family.

"Throughout the inquest the Environment Agency provided detailed evidence to assist the independent coroner in reaching his conclusions."

A spokesman for the coroner previously said an "independent, full, frank and fearless inquest" was concluded in September 2016.

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