CL:AIRE recently applied its Qualified Persons (QP) Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures.
A project was flagged to CL:AIRE by the Environment Agency via the whistle-blow service, outlining multiple concerns with the application of a Route A Direct Transfer Scenario to a quarry restoration.
A full audit of the project was conducted by CL:AIRE which identified several failings with the MMP and supporting documentation.
Following completion of the audit, CL:AIRE conducted an Investigation Panel process requesting information from all parties to clarify the situation. Additionally, the project was passed to an independent, external auditor for review, whose findings were in agreement with CL:AIRE’s.
A number of DoW CoP required documents were missing, including site characterisation, an appropriate risk assessment, and remediation strategy for the Receiver site.
It was also established that the appropriate liaison had not been made with the regulators to ensure no objection to the application of the DoW CoP.
A meeting was held with the QP to go through the key points and reiterate the requirements of the DoW CoP and the role of the QP in making a Declaration. The QP acknowledged that the DoW CoP had been applied incorrectly and that the Declaration should not have been made.
The QP has been suspended from the QP Register. Reinstatement on the register is pending attendance on a DoW CoP training course and successful completion of the QP Online Assessment. A record of the outcome will be held by CL:AIRE and considered in the event of future use of the procedures.
QPs should be confident before submitting a Declaration that all the required lines of evidence are in place to demonstrate that the four factors of the DoW CoP have been met. Where clarification is sought, we encourage the use of the CL:AIRE Help Desk prior to making a Declaration.