urban development in many countries, it is becoming increasingly necessary to re-use previously dev- oped (brownfield) sites and to deal with their accompanying suites of contaminants. It is therefore essential to fully understand the diversity and properties of urban soils, to assess the possible risks from the contaminants they contain and devise ways of cleaning up sites and/or minimizing hazards. The author, Helmut Meuser, is Professor of Soil Protection and Soil Clean-up at the University of Applied Sciences, Osnabrück and is one of Europe¿s foremost experts on contamination from technogenic materials in urban soils. He has many years¿ experience of research in Berlin, Essen, Osnabrück, other regions of Germany, and several other countries.