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ZANE’S LAW SUMMIT ON CONTAMINATED LAND AND WATER
- info292531
- Jun 13
- 4 min read
Updated: Jun 16
On 11 June 2025, a landmark summit was held in Parliament to confront a long-ignored threat: historic landfill sites. Politicians, trade unions, legal experts and grassroots campaigners came together with a clear and urgent demand — to enable a ‘Zane’s Law’, a legislative proposal to protect communities from contaminated land, prevent future harm, and bring accountability to an environmental threat that hides from plain sight.
The summit marked a major milestone. Backed by the public, trade unions, town and village councillors, and environmental experts, it was a formidable and united call to action — a critical step toward turning campaigning momentum into law.
It was also attended by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Rt Hon Steve Reed MP, representing the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer.
“We’ve heard — and will keep hearing — about the long and dreadful shadow of our industrial past,” said Luke Douglas-Home, Chartered Environmentalist and Director of A Future Without Rubbish. “Historic, or legacy landfill sites cause serious environmental harm, serious injury to the public, and the loss of beautiful, young lives.”
What Are Historic Landfills?
Historic landfill sites are former dumping grounds — many dating back to before modern environmental protections. At the time, waste (including toxic and hazardous material) was buried with little to no oversight. Although many of these sites were closed decades ago, they remain scattered across the UK, often dangerously close to homes, schools, transport routes, and waterways.
“Across the UK, there are many, many thousands of legacy landfill sites,” Douglas-Home noted in his speech. “Legal uncertainty, political caution, and commercial interests too often obscure the facts — delaying action and blurring accountability.”
These sites present not theoretical but real, often invisible risks — with the potential to devastate lives, poison ecosystems, and contaminate vital water supplies.
Who Was Zane?
Zane Gbangbola was just seven years old when he died in February 2014 during flooding in Chertsey, Surrey. His parents, Kye and Nicole, and Zane himself were harmed by hydrogen cyanide gas that leaked from a nearby flooded historic landfill and entered their home. Zane paid the ultimate price for this silent, buried danger — with his life.
Their fight for truth has ignited a nationwide campaign, as more and more victims of these polluting time bombs come to light.
“Nicole and Kye, your courage, persistence, and clarity — and Zane, your life — have brought these issues into the light...” said Douglas-Home, “...as opposed to the unbearable darkness of Zane’s untimely death.”
What Is Zane’s Law?
Zane’s Law is a proposed piece of legislation that aims to ensure no other family suffers the same fate. It calls for:
A national, public register of contaminated land and landfill sites.
A clear legal duty of care to protect the public.
Funding for councils to act — through the “polluter pays” principle: councils will NOT have to pay for remediation of lethal legacy landfills.
“Zane’s Law is necessary for us all. It is overdue. It is timely. And it is right”, said Douglas-Home.
The ISRRA: A Vital First Step
One of the most effective tools to assess landfill risk and clarify responsibility is the Initial Site Risk and Responsibility Audit (ISRRA) — a process developed and piloted by A Future Without Rubbish. It compiles local evidence through on-site visits, interviews, historical research, and desk-based assessments, helping communities and councils identify what is known, what’s missing, and what actions are required.
“ISRRA is a very practical, critical first step. It enables effective action,” said Douglas-Home.“Each pilot began with local concern — but each led to wider engagement at borough or county level. It is directly aligned with Zane’s Law.”
ISRRAs have been completed in Merseyside, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Norfolk, with a new one starting in Suffolk this July. Each has revealed how proximity to old landfill sites — particularly in flood-prone areas — places human and ecological life at significant risk.
The Political Moment: 11 June 2025
The summit was not just symbolic — it was a powerful sign of rising political momentum. Environment Secretary, Right Honourable Steve Reed MP expressed clear support for Zane’s Law. He also confirmed to the summit that he was taking this issue seriously. MPs from across the political spectrum acknowledged that environmental justice can no longer wait.
Speakers highlighted ongoing environmental tragedies harming lives today — including in Corby, Wales, Cheshire, Merseyside, and Rainham, where chemical waste sits in flood-prone land near homes.
“The question is — what do we do, for us all?” asked Douglas-Home. “We start with truth. We start with transparency. We start with Zane’s Law.”
Speakers
Speakers included Baroness Natalie Bennett (Chair), Kye Gbangbola (Zane’s Daddy), Nicole Lawler (Zane’s Mummy), John Watts (speech read by Mike Cooksley), Alison Gaffney (Corby Child Cancers Campaign), Ruth Kettle Frisby (Launders Lane, Havering), Steve Skivens (Caerphilly Borough Council), Cllr Kerry Pickett (Brighton & Hove City Council), Denise Ashurst (Dirty Water Campaign, speech read by Liz Mansfield), Sarah Green (Hillingdon Leaking Landfill), Marie Sansford (AGHAST), Angela Fonso (Gasworks Communities United, speech ready Liz Mansfield), Luke Douglas-Home (A Future Without Rubbish), Reverend Paul Cawthorne (PCB Contaminated Land Research Team Leader), Keiron Finney (ExEA Associates Ltd), Des Collins (Collins Law – Toxic Town), and Ian Murray (President, Fire Brigades Union).
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