SEPP 55 Contamination Assessments: What Replaced SEPP 55 in NSW?
If you have been asked for a “SEPP 55 contamination assessment”, “SEPP 55 report” or similar documentation for a development application in NSW, the terminology is now out of date — but the contaminated land planning requirements have not disappeared.
State Environmental Planning Policy No 55 – Remediation of Land (SEPP 55) was repealed on 1 March 2022 as part of the NSW Government's consolidation of State Environmental Planning Policies. Its contaminated land provisions were transferred into Chapter 4 of the State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021. The NSW Government described this as an administrative consolidation rather than a substantive policy change.
As at September 2026, Chapter 4 of the Resilience and Hazards SEPP remains the relevant NSW planning framework for considering land contamination and remediation during development assessment.
For developers and landowners, this means that when Council refers to a “SEPP 55 assessment”, the report actually required today will commonly be a Preliminary Site Investigation (PSI) or another appropriate land contamination assessment prepared under the current NSW framework. Depending on the site and proposed development, this may range from a preliminary site assessment through to a more detailed environmental site investigation.
Does SEPP 55 Still Apply in NSW?
No. SEPP 55 itself is no longer a current environmental planning instrument.
It was repealed when the State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021 commenced on 1 March 2022. Chapter 4 — Remediation of Land — incorporated the contaminated land planning provisions previously contained within SEPP 55.
That is why older Council documents, development consents, planning reports and consultant reports may still refer to:
SEPP 55;
a SEPP 55 assessment;
a SEPP 55 contamination report;
a preliminary contamination assessment under SEPP 55; or
Clause 7 of SEPP 55.
The equivalent development-assessment provision is now section 4.6 of the Resilience and Hazards SEPP. NSW legislative amendments specifically replaced references to Clause 7 of SEPP 55 with section 4.6 of the newer SEPP.
The terminology changed. The need to consider contamination as part of development assessment did not.
What Does Section 4.6 Require?
Section 4.6 establishes the fundamental contaminated-land consideration for development applications in NSW.
Before granting development consent, the consent authority must consider whether the land is contaminated. If contamination is present, it must be satisfied that the land is suitable in its existing condition, or can be made suitable through remediation, for the proposed development.
This is an important distinction.
The planning requirement is not simply:
“Has somebody completed soil testing?”
The underlying question is:
“Is the land suitable, or can it be made suitable, for the use proposed?”
The contaminated land assessment provides the evidence needed to answer that question.
Is a Preliminary Site Investigation Required for Every Development Application?
No.
Section 4.6 requires contamination to be considered when development applications are determined, but that does not mean every DA automatically requires a Preliminary Site Investigation.
A formal preliminary investigation is specifically required before determining certain development applications involving a change of use on land captured by section 4.6(4). This includes particular land with known potentially contaminating histories and some proposed sensitive uses where the previous use of the land is unknown or incompletely understood.
In practice, a PSI may also be requested where Council does not have enough information to confidently determine whether contamination represents a constraint to the proposed development.
Common triggers can include:
former industrial or manufacturing use;
mechanical workshops;
service stations or historical fuel storage;
potentially contaminated fill;
waste disposal or dumping;
agricultural or horticultural activities;
demolition material or asbestos;
previous potentially contaminating commercial activities;
rezoning or redevelopment to a more sensitive land use; or
incomplete information about the site's previous use.
For example, development of former industrial land for residential, childcare, educational or healthcare purposes will generally require a higher level of confidence regarding contamination than continued use of an established commercial property.
What Is a “SEPP 55 Contamination Assessment” Today?
There is not a separate modern report formally called a SEPP 55 contamination assessment.
The phrase is a legacy term that may be used to describe the contaminated land assessment required to allow a consent authority to address its planning obligations.
For many projects, the appropriate first-stage report is a Preliminary Site Investigation. In practice, the form of environmental site assessment required depends on the contamination risks identified for the property. Some projects can be adequately addressed through a PSI, while others may require a targeted soil investigation, Detailed Site Investigation, groundwater assessment or another form of contaminated land assessment.
For example, evidence of imported fill or historical industrial activity may warrant investigation of soil contamination, while former fuel infrastructure or mobile contaminants may also require groundwater assessments. Surface water assessment may be relevant where contamination could migrate through drainage or runoff to a nearby waterway.
A PSI typically examines:
current and historical land use;
historical aerial photography;
property and planning information;
previous environmental reports;
potentially contaminating activities;
surrounding land uses;
fill and landform changes;
geology and groundwater conditions;
current site conditions;
potential contamination sources;
Areas of Environmental Concern;
Contaminants of Potential Concern; and
potential source–pathway–receptor relationships.
The findings are then brought together in a preliminary Conceptual Site Model (CSM) to determine whether contamination could plausibly affect the site and whether further investigation is warranted.
The NSW EPA reporting framework identifies the PSI as the first stage of contaminated land management, followed where necessary by sampling and analysis planning, Detailed Site Investigation, risk assessment, remediation, validation and ongoing management.
Does a SEPP 55 Assessment Require Soil Testing?
Not necessarily.
One of the common misconceptions surrounding “SEPP 55 reports” is that a contamination assessment must automatically involve soil sampling.
A PSI is primarily concerned with determining whether contamination has the potential to exist and whether further investigation is required.
For some properties, a sufficiently complete history and site inspection may establish that no credible contamination issue requiring intrusive investigation has been identified.
For others, limited preliminary sampling may assist in addressing a specific uncertainty.
Where the available information identifies credible contamination sources that require proper characterisation, the next step may be a targeted soil site investigation or a broader Detailed Site Investigation (DSI) rather than simply adding a small number of arbitrary samples to a PSI.
Where contaminated soil is suspected, the investigation should be designed around the identified source, likely contaminants, depth and distribution of potential impacts and the proposed land use. If groundwater, surface water or another environmental medium forms part of the Conceptual Site Model, those pathways may also need to be assessed.
The investigation should respond to the Conceptual Site Model and the actual data gaps identified for the site.
When Does a Detailed Site Investigation Become Necessary?
Section 4.6 expressly allows the consent authority to require a detailed investigation where the findings of the preliminary investigation warrant one.
A DSI may therefore be required where the PSI identifies issues such as:
potentially contaminated fill;
former underground or above-ground fuel infrastructure;
workshops or industrial process areas;
waste burial;
chemical storage;
contamination associated with former agricultural use;
asbestos within soil or fill;
possible off-site migration;
groundwater contamination; or
another material uncertainty that cannot be resolved from the available information.
The DSI uses intrusive investigation and laboratory analysis to test and refine the Conceptual Site Model and establish the nature, extent and significance of contamination.
What Happens if Contamination Is Identified?
Finding contamination does not automatically mean that development cannot proceed.
The relevant question is whether the contamination creates an unacceptable risk for the proposed use and, if so, whether that risk can be appropriately remediated or managed.
Depending on the investigation findings, the project may require:
further targeted investigation;
additional delineation;
a site-specific risk assessment;
a Remedial Action Plan (RAP);
remediation;
an Environmental Management Plan;
validation; or
ongoing monitoring or management.
A RAP establishes how unacceptable contamination risks will be addressed and what remedial objectives need to be achieved.
Following remediation, a validation assessment is generally undertaken to demonstrate whether those objectives have been met and whether the site is suitable for its intended use.
This staged process is reflected in the NSW EPA's contaminated land reporting framework.
SEPP 55, Council and Development Applications
The continued use of the term “SEPP 55 assessment” can be confusing because different Councils, planners and older development documents may use slightly different terminology.
One Council may request a:
“SEPP 55 assessment”
while another may ask for:
“a Preliminary Site Investigation in accordance with Chapter 4 of the Resilience and Hazards SEPP”
and another may simply request:
“a contamination report demonstrating the suitability of the site for the proposed use.”
The appropriate response should be based on what the planning authority actually needs to determine.
For example, the City of Sydney's current development application guidance refers directly to Chapter 4 of the Resilience and Hazards SEPP and identifies PSI, DSI and remediation documentation as the relevant contaminated-land reporting stages.
This is why it is worth reviewing the Council request, development plans and available site history before commissioning a report.
A full DSI should not be undertaken where a PSI can adequately resolve the planning question, but equally, a desktop report should not be relied upon where credible contamination risks require intrusive investigation.
SEPP 55 vs the Resilience and Hazards SEPP
The practical change can be summarised simply:
Before 1 March 2022:
SEPP 55 – Remediation of Land
From 1 March 2022:
Chapter 4 of the State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021
The NSW Government confirmed that the consolidation transferred the SEPP 55 provisions into Chapter 4 and was not intended to materially alter their legal effect.
For new development and rezoning applications, the current planning instrument should therefore be referenced rather than SEPP 55.
What If Council Has Specifically Asked for a “SEPP 55 Report”?
If Council correspondence still uses the old terminology, you generally do not need to ask Council to withdraw the request simply because SEPP 55 has been repealed.
Instead, the project information should be reviewed to determine the appropriate contaminated-land assessment under the current framework.
In many cases this will be a Preliminary Site Investigation prepared with reference to the NSW EPA contaminated land reporting framework and the ASC NEPM.
Where the PSI identifies contamination risks that warrant further investigation, the assessment can then progress to a DSI.
The important outcome is to provide the consent authority with sufficient information to determine whether contamination affects the suitability of the land for the proposed development.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ):
Q: Has SEPP 55 been repealed?
Yes. SEPP 55 was repealed on 1 March 2022 and its contaminated land provisions were transferred to Chapter 4 of the State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021.
Q: What replaced SEPP 55 in NSW?
Chapter 4 — Remediation of Land — of the State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021 currently contains the NSW planning provisions dealing with contaminated land and remediation.
Q: What replaced Clause 7 of SEPP 55?
The equivalent provision is section 4.6 of the Resilience and Hazards SEPP, dealing with contamination and remediation when determining development applications.
Q: Is a SEPP 55 assessment the same as a PSI?
Not strictly. “SEPP 55 assessment” is an informal legacy expression. In many development situations, a Preliminary Site Investigation is the appropriate report used to assess potential contamination and determine whether further investigation is required.
Q: Does every development application require a PSI?
No. The need for a PSI depends on the site history, proposed change of use, available information and the applicable planning requirements.
Q: What happens if a PSI identifies potential contamination?
Depending on the issue identified, further targeted investigation or a Detailed Site Investigation may be required. A DSI does not automatically mean remediation will be necessary.
Who Should Prepare a Contamination Assessment?
A contamination assessment should be prepared by an environmental consultant with appropriate experience in contaminated land and an understanding of the NSW planning and contaminated-land framework.
Experienced environmental consultants should be able to determine the level of investigation required rather than automatically recommending intrusive testing. Depending on the site, the required environmental consulting services may include a Preliminary Site Investigation, soil investigation, Detailed Site Investigation, groundwater assessment, remediation planning or validation.
For more complex projects, engaging an environmental consultancy with capability across contaminated land, asbestos, waste and environmental monitoring can also help address related issues identified during the assessment.
Contamination Assessments for Development Applications in NSW
Confluence Environmental prepares Preliminary Site Investigations and contaminated land assessments across NSW for development applications, planning proposals, subdivisions, property transactions and redevelopment projects.
Our assessments focus on the site's history, proposed land use, Conceptual Site Model and the specific planning question that needs to be resolved.
Where Council has requested a “SEPP 55 contamination assessment”, PSI or other contaminated land report, we can review the request and available project information to determine the appropriate assessment scope.
Learn more about our Preliminary Site Investigation services or contact our team to request a proposal.