HAIL Site

HAIL stands for Hazardous Activities and Industries List, maintained by the Ministry for the Environment. It identifies activities and industries that are likely to cause land contamination — such as petrol stations, timber treatment plants, sheep dips, orchards (due to historical pesticide use), dry cleaners, and landfills.

If a property has been used for any activity on the HAIL list at any time in its history, the land is considered potentially contaminated. This doesn't mean the land is necessarily contaminated, but it triggers additional obligations under the National Environmental Standards for Assessing and Managing Contaminants in Soil to Protect Human Health (NES-CS).

HAIL status affects what you can do with the land. Before you can change the land use, subdivide, or disturb the soil on a HAIL site, you may need to get a Detailed Site Investigation (DSI) to assess contamination levels. If contamination is found, remediation may be required before development can proceed.

HAIL status can mean unexpected costs, development restrictions, and potential health risks. Even if the hazardous activity happened decades ago, the contamination may persist in the soil. Remediation costs can range from a few thousand dollars to hundreds of thousands, depending on the type and extent of contamination.

Always check the LIM report and your regional council's contaminated land database. If the property has HAIL status, get a Preliminary Site Investigation (PSI) and potentially a Detailed Site Investigation (DSI) before committing to purchase.

The LIM report will note known HAIL activities on the property. Your regional council maintains a database of sites with known or suspected contamination — you can request a property enquiry. The council's Selected Land Use Register (SLUR) or equivalent database records sites where HAIL activities have occurred.