SCOTLAND'S environ­ment watch-dog is investigating thousands of tonnes of contaminated soil piled at one of the gateways to Glasgow's Common-wealth Games.

The Scottish Environ-ment Protection Agency (Sepa) has started monitor-ing four spoil heaps left near Dalmarnock railway station amid a legal row that could see the waste stay on site into next year.

The Evening Times has learned that at least 6500 cubic metres of dirt remains at the site, which has been shut down after a dispute between local regeneration agency Clyde Gateway and operator Greensolutions.

Nobody knows for sure how much the dirt at the site would weigh. However, 6500 cubic metres of soil would normally weigh more than 10,000 tonnes, depending on its density.

One of the four piles is understood to contain untreated contaminated land, but insiders stress it does not pose an immediate threat to public safety.

Clyde Gateway, which has spent nearly £2.5million on the site, can't say if the eyesore will be cleared in time for the Games.

Sepa, which is respons-ible for policing Scotland's waste industry and issues such as toxic land, has an "open investigation" into the site at Poplin Street.

However, a spokes­man for the agency would only say: "We are aware of the storage of waste at the Green-solutions (Glasgow) Limited site in Poplin Street, in Dalmarnock and we are monitoring the situation.

"To date, Sepa has taken no samples of any waste soils on site, so cannot comment on any potential contamination issues."

The Sepa investigation comes after a lengthy dispute between Clyde Gateway and the former operator of the site, Irish-based Greensolutions.

Clyde Gateway is suing Greensolutions over what it says was unpaid rent. Green- solutions says it should not have to pay rent – because it was locked out of the site.

The regeneration agency blames Greensolutions for "leaving behind" the spoil heaps when it relocated to a new site in the former British Alcan building in Aikenhead Road, where it is now based.

Greensolutions counters by saying it has always obeyed instructions from Clyde Gateway and the agency's contractors.

The Poplin Street facility is on the site of a former gasworks.

The company planned to use it to run a soil hospital – a yard where contamin-ated soil can be cleaned and readied to be re-used.

Many of the brownfield developments in the East End and South Side of Glasgow are on land that needs to be decontamin-ated, including Poplin Street.

Sources at Clyde Gateway and Greensolutions say four of the three remaining spoil heaps at the site contain soil that has been cleaned.

A fourth pile, however, has not been touched after being delivered from another Clyde Gateway develop-ment. All four heaps are locked up.

Clyde Gateway has long-term aspirations for the old gasworks site but no immediate plans.

A spokesman for the agency said: "The site at Poplin Street was acquired for just under £1.5million, with a further £900,000 being spent on its remed-iation to resolve the contam­-ination issues arising from its former use as a gasworks.

"The site is part of a master­plan for Dalmar-nock area and has been targeted for commercial and residential develop-ment, which we would fund through private and public sector funding.

"There are about 6500 cubic metres of spoil within four stockpiles at Poplin Street left behind by Greensolutions when the company relocated to a base in the South Side.

"The situation is comp-licated by the fact that two of the stockpiles sit within an area for which Green-solutions had planning permission and necessary licences to operate a soil hospital, while the other two have encroached on to adjoining land, with all the land being in the own-ership of Clyde Gateway.

"As we have served notice on Greensolutions to bring the lease arrange-ments to an end and are also taking legal action to recover rent due to us, Clyde Gateway is not in a position to comment on precise timescales to resolve the various issues."

Ivan Rowe, owner of Greensolutions, disputes he owes anything to Clyde Gateway. Mr Rowe also disputes he has dumped waste at the site. He said he did not process soil in the un-treated spoil heap because he was told by Clyde Gateway's contract-ors not to do so.

Mr Rowe said: "Despite our many efforts to have a conversation with Clyde Gateway, they have declined.

"They know where the liability lies. We did as we were instructed to do. How can we owe them any rent when we were locked off the site?"

The remaining soil – with permission from Sepa – could be reused. However, taking it to landfill would incur hundreds of thous-ands of pounds in tax.

Dalmarnock, mean-while, continues to suffer from fly-tipping. Items close to the old gasworks, for example, include an entire kitchen from a kebab shop, a burnt-out artic-ulated lorry, abandoned fairground attractions and hundreds of ladies' shoes.

Clyde Gateway plans a substantial clean-up ahead of the Games.

david.leask@ heraldandtimes.co.uk

Investigations Reporter