Sampling and pre-treatment } some observations from the United Kingdom

This paper arises from the current discussion in the United Kingdom to develop, under the auspices of the British Standards Institution a ‘code of practice for investigation of potentially contaminated sites’. Within this code of practice a key element in the analysis is the sampling strategy for the collection of samples and characterisation of the site. The paper briefly summarises the current status of the development of the ideas on the sampling and pre-treatment of potentially contaminated sites, and emphasises the importance which must be attached to the sampling phase of any investigation if the outcomes are to be valid. A brief reference is made to other studies which have addressed the problem of sampling contaminated sites. These studies have considered both the design of the sampling scheme and the number of samples to be taken in relation to the costs of sampling, the nature of the potential hazard, the potential risks involved and the statistical requirements if samples are to be used to predict within given confidence limits.