Council for Health and Environmental Safety of Soils (CHESS): A Coalition to Standardize Approaches to Soil Contamination Problems

Soil contamination has become recognized as a significant environmental and public health concern over the past decade. The range of contaminants in soil is now known to be very broad, including petroleum, heavy metals, dioxins, pesticides, organic solvents, and others. The presence of such contaminants in soil is affecting the use of land throughout the United States, including types of development and insurance policies. The costs associated with cleanup activities have escalated enormously, often to the point of having major impact on business and residential development. Along with these increased costs of cleanup is the emerging concern that soil contamination may present significant health concerns as a result of groundwater contamination, soil ingestion, crop contamination, and localized air pollution.