

Where a site falls within a “Development High Risk Area”, the local planning authority will require a Coal Mining Risk Assessment.
The Coal Authority defines high risk areas where its records indicate that the land may be affected by previous coal mining activities, and which might affect surface stability. These include;
- Shallow (known or probable) coal mine workings
- Shafts and adits
- Faults and fissures
- Mine gas
Michael D Joyce Associates LLP is highly experienced in carrying out such assessments. The assessment typically involves reviewing the following;
- British Geological Survey 1:10,000 and 1:10,560 scale maps
- British Geological Survey records
- British Geological Survey memoirs
- Coal Authority Survey Interactive Map Viewer
- Coal Authority Consultants Coal Mining Report
The subsequent Coal Mining Risk Assessment report will provide clear recommendations as to whether the site is at risk from past mining activities.
Should the report conclude that there is a risk from such activities which may affect the development, further investigation will be recommended.
This may include rotary borehole drilling to confirm the actual presence of shallow mineworkings, or trial pitting and trenching to locate and investigate former shafts and adits. This can all be carried out by Michael D Joyce Associates LLP in house.