The Executive Committee currently comprises:
Kate Baker – Chair
Kate is a Chartered Scientist with over 30 years of experience working in land quality as a specialist consultant, evaluating risks from ground contamination for clients for a variety of drivers, from permitting to due diligence, portfolio management, redevelopment, etc. She specialises in human health risk assessment and is an Accredited SoBRA Human Health Risk Assessor. She has worked on a range of complex sites with multiple stakeholders to satisfy, and has derived risk-based assessment criteria for human health and surface water quality for a wide range of novel contaminants, including pesticides and pharmaceuticals. For much of her career, she has been a lead technical specialist within the businesses that she has worked for, driving quality and technical excellence in data interpretation and reporting and providing practical solutions that satisfy client drivers and regulatory requirements. She has a passion for training and mentoring early careers professionals and is a STEM Ambassador, promoting careers in Geosciences and providing support with Maths to primary and secondary school students. Kate is one of the Tier 2 Toxicologists on the Phase 2 C4SL project.
David Dyson – Vice Chair
David is a Chartered Geologist and an Accredited SoBRA Human Health and Vapour Intrusion Risk Assessor with more than 20 years of experience working as a consultant in contaminated land risk assessment and remediation. David has worked across a wide range of sectors including central and local government, brownfield developers, industrials and infrastructure; his career has included working as a field scientist on site investigations across the UK and Europe, moving on to technical reporting and project management, before developing primarily as a technical specialist in human health risk assessment and the application of Part 2A of the EPA. Early in his career, David contributed research to the development of the 2009 EIC/AGS/CL:AIRE human health GAC and more recently led SoBRA’s vapour sub-group’s development of a guidance note for vapour intrusion conceptual site models. David is currently the vapour sub-group leader for the next phase of SoBRA guidance including development of vapour GAC and vapour DQRA approaches. Outside SoBRA, David is part of the steering committee of the North-east Thames Contaminated Land Forum (CLF:NET) where he works alongside industry regulators and other consultants to organise conferences aimed at improving the standard of contaminated land assessment and regulation in the region. This fits with one of David’s key roles at his employer, which involves management of a global Technical Practice Group whose aim is to share knowledge and innovation, provide training and improve standards consistently across the company.
Sarah Bannon – Secretary
Sarah has 20 years of experience in sustainable contaminated land assessment across the UK and Europe, including geo-environmental ground investigation, hazardous materials assessment, human health and controlled water risk assessment, and remediation of brownfield sites. She started her career at ENVIRON UK Ltd in 2004, later becoming part of Ramboll UK Ltd. She spent one year of her career at Delta-Simons Ltd, before returning to Ramboll in 2023, where she predominantly supports industrial/chemical sector clients with environmental due diligence (mergers, acquisitions, divestment, refinancing etc.), liability reviews, permitting, and regulatory compliance, as well as undertaking technical expert reviews and research for public sector clients. Sarah’s background is in geology and geochemistry, specialising in probabilistic modelling and controlled water risk assessment. She has chaired quantitative risk assessment and laboratory services working groups, and is part of a technical forum for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS). Sarah is committed to drive the shift towards more sustainable risk-based land regeneration as part of decommissioning, decontamination and demolition (‘DDD’). Throughout her career, she has mentored and delivered technical training to peers. She is an ability network ally with a personal aspiration to increase awareness and support, and celebrate neurodiversity within our sector.
Rachel Dewhurst – Treasurer
Rachel has 20 years of experience working on water resources projects in the UK, Europe and the Caribbean. She is an expert in groundwater, groundwater geochemistry and contaminated land, and has worked a wide range of projects that lie on the intersection between geography, geology, chemistry and biology. Rachel strongly believes that by working effectively together across disciplines we can develop the best solutions for all stakeholders. Key technical projects include new production boreholes in the Sherwood Sandstone, 20 years of working on an airforce site in the UK, numerous groundwater and human health risk assessments for sites in the UK and abroad and quantifying the feasibility of artificial recharge in terms of geochemistry and natural reactions during injection. She manages the Stantec UK Water – Water Resources Team which challenges her to look at problems with WQ in receiving waters, abstraction impacts on wetlands, river restoration and fish passage projects, as well as her bread and butter catchment, contaminated land and borehole projects. Never one to refuse a challenge, she also works part-time, has three daughters who all do sport, sits on the committee of the UK Society for Brownfield Risk assessment, examines for Chartered Geologist and runs a brownie pack.
Tim Rolfe
Tim is a Director at YES Environmental and has worked on land quality issues for 25 years, having worked at consultancies in the south-east and north-west of the UK. A SoBRA member since 2010, Tim is a Chartered Scientist with CIWEM, holds ASoBRA for Human Health, Controlled Waters and Vapour Intrusion, and was on the SoBRA AGAC subgroup. He holds a degree in Environmental Biology and a masters in Environmental Diagnosis. He has worked on a range of project sites from petrol stations to large manufacturing sites and former landfills, and has worked for clients from small scale developers to corporates, government and national infrastructure projects. In addition to DQRA he has a strong interest in field techniques and laboratory issues. Tim has a natural instinct for improvement, development of new methodologies and sharing of knowledge for the benefit of all. Away from work he enjoys being in the countryside, hill walking and helps to plant and maintain a community woodland.
Fiona Townley – Website Co-Ordinator and Membership
Fiona is a Chartered Geologist with over 25 years experience in environmental consultancy and contaminated land, primarily: design, procurement, management and reporting of phased, often significant and complex, site investigations; human health and controlled waters risk assessments; remediation options appraisals, strategies and implementation plans, and the investigation, management and remediation of spill incidents. This has involved working with a range of clients from individuals through private sector developers, industrial, legal and insurance clients to the public sector, on a wide variety of sites. Fiona has prepared expert witness evidence cases relating to the suitability and adequacy of intrusive ground investigations, sampling regimes and the application of human health risk assessment criteria; together with providing written evidence and attending the public planning appeal for a residential development on a site with complex ground conditions relating to unauthorised landfilling activities. Fiona is also a Qualified Person under the CL:AIRE DoW CoP and applies the principles and knowledge of this to minimise waste and promote re-use in remediation projects. In her current role as Principal Scientist at RSK Raw, Fiona ensures the business complies with current legislation, guidance and best practice whilst providing advice and support on technical matters, particularly the human health risk assessment criteria which Fiona derived following the publication of LQM’s S4UL.
Melanie Lyons
Mel is a Chartered Geologist and certified SiLC and NQMS SQP who has been working in the field of sustainable risk-based contaminated land assessment since 2005. With an MSc in hydrogeology, Mel started working for Mouchel Parkman, before moving to RSK Geosciences in 2007 and most recently joined the Soil and Groundwater team at Shell in January 2023. Mel also spent 2 years working in the contaminated land team at the Northern Ireland Environment Agency and as a Senior Hydrogeologist for the Geological Survey of Northern Ireland, promoting increased understanding of groundwater related science through delivery of training courses and public outreach projects and providing input to relevant areas of government policy, as required. In her current role she is also involved in collaborative research projects, including work around transient source term modelling to support groundwater contaminant fate and transport assessments. Mel is on the Editorial Board for the Geological Society’s Quarterly Journal of Engineering Geology and Hydrogeology, a scrutineer for the SoBRA accreditation scheme, and formerly led the SoBRA Vapour Intrusion (VI) sub-group. Her specialism is hydrogeology and detailed quantitative risk assessment for controlled waters and human health, and she is a SoBRA accredited risk assessor (controlled waters) and SoBRA registered risk assessor (human health). Her experience involves projects from across the UK, Europe, Middle East, India and South Africa, with clients ranging from small scale private developers through to large development corporations and international oil companies and consortia. She also has a passion for mentoring early career professionals and has delivered university lectures on the fundamentals of contaminated land assessment, guidelines and standards, preliminary risk assessments, conceptual site models, risk communication and remedial options appraisals.
Kimberley Neville
Kimberley has been working in contaminated land investigation and assessment across the UK for almost twenty years. She is a Chartered Geologist (CGeol), certified SiLC and NQMS SQP, and holds both ASoBRA for controlled waters and RSoBRA for human health and vapour intrusion. She also holds a PhD in Environmental Engineering. Her current role is Technical Director at Soiltechnics Ltd and she specialises in controlled waters and human health risk assessment for ground and groundwater contamination, focusing on assessing long-term risks to inform sustainable remediation strategies.
Kimberley has successfully supported multiple complex environmental challenges for clients across various sectors, including residential, commercial, industrial, and infrastructure via high-quality and sustainable solutions. She has worked on a wide range of projects from residential developments, historical and active landfill sites, petrol stations, former gasworks and laundry sites. Alongside offering robust and practical solutions to support complex development projects, she also provides training and mentoring to peers. She is also passionate about promoting geoscience as a career option, supporting STEM and improving diversity within the industry.
Stephanie Cox
Steph is a Director of E3P, a multi-disciplinary environmental consultancy, and Managing Director of the Midlands office, with over 15 years’ experience in geoenvironmental consultancy, specialising in risk assessment of land contamination with a focus on controlled waters, ground gases, and emerging contaminants such as PFAS. Throughout her career, Steph has been committed to technical excellence and advancing best practice. She has contributed to industry guidance, including through the CIRIA PFAS Steering Group, and regularly provides training and thought-leadership on complex conceptual site models and risk assessment approaches. Within E3P, Steph leads the technical innovation forum and professional development programmes, ensuring consistency, knowledge-sharing, and high standards across the business. Steph is particularly passionate about supporting early-career professionals. As an active member of SoBRA’s Early Careers sub-group, she has helped design and deliver resources to support practitioners on their journey towards chartership. Mentoring and developing others has been one of the most rewarding aspects of her career, and she is keen to build on this through the executive committee. Steph also brings experience from wider industry roles, including serving as Chair of Women in Property North West, where her focus is on inclusive leadership and building diverse professional networks which aligns closely with SoBRA’s ethos of knowledge exchange, collaboration, and accessibility. Steph will contribute a blend of technical expertise, leadership experience, and a collaborative approach and is committed to ensuring SoBRA continues to be a trusted platform for high-quality technical development while also supporting and inspiring the next generation of land contamination specialists.
Dominic Young
Dominic is a Chartered Environmentalist with over 15 years experience in the brownfield sector. He holds a MRes in Geo-environmental Engineering and a 1st Class BSc Honours Environmental Science and Environmental Management. Dominic started his career in the private sector as a consultant developing his experience on the practical elements of site investigation and gas / groundwater monitoring on a range of brownfield sites including major infrastructure projects. Dominic also fulfilled the role of Environmental Scientist for a remediation contractor on a range of brownfield sites, including former gas works. Thereafter, Dominic joined the public sector and has since worked as Contaminated Land Officer for a number of Scottish Local Authorities. Throughout his career, Dominic has endeavoured to deliver a high level of technical excellence in his work and considers professional development as a key means in supporting this goal. He has achieved Registered Risk Assessor status (RSoBRA) across the four practice areas and is a member of SoBRA sub-group on Ground Gases. Dominic is active within the wider industry and currently sits on the Institution of Environmental Science (IES) Land Condition Steering Group. Dominic is kept busy outside work as father to two young daughters. He is also a qualified gymnastics coach and enjoys running, participating in events from 10km to ultra marathons.
Laura Garland
Laura has over 15 years experience in contaminated land risk assessment and is a specialist in both human health and controlled waters Detailed Quantitative Risk Assessment. As an Associate Technical Director at Arcadis, she acts as a technical lead on a range of complex projects, from chemical manufacturing facilities, landfills to large-scale residential developments, across the UK, Europe and the Middle East. Her experience spans a variety of regulatory frameworks, including Part 2A, planning, and voluntary schemes, and she is an Accredited Risk Assessor with SoBRA for both human health and controlled waters / water environment. Beyond project delivery, she leads a team of specialist risk assessors, as well as Arcadis UK’s Land Contamination Community of Practice – a platform dedicated to knowledge sharing and promoting best practice. Through mentoring and technical leadership, she is committed to fostering transparent, consistent, and scientifically sound approaches that enhance the effectiveness and credibility of brownfield redevelopment
Sarah Harris
Sarah is a Chartered Environmentalist with 14 years of experience in the fields of quantitative controlled water risk assessment (QCWRA), remediation engineering and environmental regulation.
Her current role is Lead Specialist Advisory in Hydrogeology at Natural Resources Wales, and she previously spent a decade in environmental consultancy and remediation contracting, as both project manager and technical specialist on complex contaminated land and groundwater projects. In her current role, she provides the expert technical lead on contaminated land hydrogeology on a variety of brownfield sites and is responsible for maintaining a high level of technical excellence with respect to groundwater related science and environmental risk-based decision making.
Sarah is an active member within wider industry organisations. She is the current Chair of the Land Condition Early Careers Network (ECN) at the IES and is passionate in providing a platform to empower and support early career practitioners. She co-ordinates with the educational sector and is committed to promoting environmental sciences to those in higher education or the beginning of their careers.