About Brownfields

What are Brownfields?

Planning Policy Guidance 3 Housing calls brownfield land “previously developed land” and defines it thus:

Previously-developed land is that which is or was occupied by a permanent structure (excluding agricultural or forestry buildings), and associated fixed surface infrastructure. The definition covers the curtilage of the development. Previously-developed land may occur in both built-up and rural settings. The definition includes defence buildings and land used for mineral extraction and waste disposal where provision for restoration has not been made through development control procedures.

The definition excludes land and buildings that are currently in use for agricultural or forestry purposes, and land in built-up areas which has not been developed previously (e.g. parks, recreation grounds, and allotments - even though these areas may contain certain urban features such as paths, pavilions and other buildings). Also excluded is land that was previously developed but where the remains of any structure or activity have blended into the landscape in the process of time (to the extent that it can reasonably be considered as part of the natural surroundings), and where there is a clear reason that could outweigh the re-use of the site - such as its contribution to nature conservation - or it has subsequently been put to an amenity use and cannot be regarded as requiring redevelopment.

Brownfield land lies at the nexus of a large number of processes: physcical contamination and its treatment, physical redevelopment, of property investment, of governance, policy and regulation, and so on. Investigating the processes of brownfield development entails holistic and integrated thinking about its diverse dimensions. SUBR:IM aims to develop research which can address the wider-ranging issues affecting brownfield land and suggest ways in which these issues can be understood and ultimately addressed. On the right panel are brief descripitions of issues that affect brownfield land.