Privacy Policy

Last updated: 13 September 2026

1. Controller

General enquiries: contact@biogeofate.com
Privacy requests: privacy@biogeofate.com

2. Website access, hosting and technical logs

When the website is accessed, hosting infrastructure may process technical information such as IP address, date and time, requested page, browser or device information, referrer information and error or security events. The website and its form functions are currently hosted through Netlify infrastructure. This processing is used to provide the website, maintain availability, diagnose faults and protect the service against misuse.

The legal basis is Article 6(1)(f) GDPR, based on the legitimate interest in operating a secure and reliable professional website. BioGeoFate does not create its own behavioural advertising or analytics profile from these technical logs.

3. Contact form and email enquiries

When you submit the project-enquiry form or send an email, BioGeoFate may process your name, email address, optional organisation, project topic, requested support, timeline, message content, privacy acknowledgement and technical submission metadata.

The data is used to understand and respond to your enquiry, assess whether the requested support is a suitable fit and take steps before a possible engagement. The legal basis is Article 6(1)(b) GDPR where the enquiry concerns a possible contract and Article 6(1)(f) GDPR for general professional communication, enquiry management and service security.

4. Preliminary project assessment

If you use the preliminary project-assessment form, BioGeoFate may additionally process project country or location, sector or facility type, environmental issue or waste stream, approximate scale, known contaminants or analytical information, existing treatment or disposal route, project stage, project objective, requested advisory support, contact details and, where you choose to provide one, a non-confidential supporting file.

The purpose is to structure an early, non-confidential project question, assess possible advisory fit and prepare a more focused follow-up discussion. The legal basis is Article 6(1)(b) GDPR for pre-contractual steps and Article 6(1)(f) GDPR for professional enquiry management.

5. Technical-resource requests

When you request a BGF Technical Resource, BioGeoFate may process your name, business email, company, country, area of interest, the resource requested, privacy acknowledgement and technical submission metadata. The information is used to fulfil the resource request and understand the professional context in which the resource is requested.

Requesting a resource does not require marketing consent. Resource fulfilment is processed independently from any optional BGF Insights choice. The legal basis is Article 6(1)(b) GDPR where the request is made in connection with a possible professional engagement and Article 6(1)(f) GDPR for professional resource fulfilment and enquiry management.

6. BGF Insights and marketing consent

BGF Insights is intended for occasional scientific perspectives, technical resources and environmental project developments. A visitor may request BGF Insights through a dedicated signup form or may separately select the optional, unchecked BGF Insights checkbox on a resource-request or preliminary-assessment form.

Marketing consent is separate from resource fulfilment and project enquiries. The first signup or optional checkbox records a request to receive BGF Insights; it does not by itself activate recurring marketing emails. Recurring BGF Insights communications will only begin after a separate confirmation step has been completed. The legal basis for consent-based marketing is Article 6(1)(a) GDPR. Consent may be withdrawn at any time with effect for the future.

Every recurring BGF Insights marketing email will provide an unsubscribe mechanism. BioGeoFate does not use purchased or scraped mailing lists. Where a dedicated mailing service is introduced, this Privacy Policy will be updated before that service is used for recurring distribution.

7. Recipients and service-provider categories

Personal data may be processed by service providers supporting website hosting and forms, business email, IT and security, and professional advisers. Form submissions are currently handled through the website hosting/form infrastructure. Data may also be shared with project partners where this is necessary for an agreed project and an appropriate legal basis exists, or with public authorities where disclosure is legally required. Access is limited to what is necessary for the relevant purpose.

8. Processing outside the European Economic Area

Some technical service providers may process data outside the European Economic Area. Where this occurs, BioGeoFate relies on an applicable adequacy decision or appropriate safeguards, such as standard contractual clauses, together with additional measures where required.

9. External image delivery

Some website visuals are currently delivered through Unsplash image infrastructure. When such an image is requested, the image provider may receive technical request data such as the IP address, browser information and the requested image URL in order to deliver the file. BioGeoFate does not use this image delivery for its own behavioural tracking. The legal basis for the website presentation is Article 6(1)(f) GDPR.

10. Retention

Ordinary enquiries, technical-resource requests and preliminary assessments that do not lead to an engagement are deleted or anonymised no later than 12 months after the last substantive communication or completion of the request, unless longer retention is necessary to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

Pending BGF Insights signup requests that do not complete the separate confirmation step are not treated as active marketing subscriptions and should normally be deleted after a limited administrative period. Confirmed marketing contact data is retained until consent is withdrawn or the distribution is otherwise discontinued. Evidence needed to demonstrate consent or withdrawal may be retained for the applicable legal limitation period.

Where an engagement is formed, relevant project, contract, invoice and business correspondence may be retained for applicable statutory retention periods.

11. Cookies, analytics and tracking

This website does not intentionally use behavioural advertising, profiling, newsletter tracking or embedded social-media feeds. BioGeoFate does not intentionally set non-essential marketing or analytics cookies. Technical storage may be used where necessary to deliver or secure website and form functions.

12. Your rights

Subject to the conditions of the GDPR, you may have rights of access, rectification, erasure, restriction of processing, data portability and objection. Where processing is based on consent, consent may be withdrawn for the future. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a competent data protection supervisory authority.

To exercise your rights, contact privacy@biogeofate.com. Reasonable information may be requested to verify identity and protect personal data from unauthorised disclosure.

13. Security and confidentiality

Appropriate technical and organisational measures are used to protect personal data against accidental or unlawful loss, alteration, disclosure or access. No internet transmission or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. Initial website forms should not be used to transmit confidential project documents, special-category personal data or other sensitive information unless a suitable secure channel has first been agreed. The optional project-assessment upload is intended only for non-confidential supporting material.

14. Automated decision-making

BioGeoFate does not use personal data from website forms for automated decisions or profiling that produces legal or similarly significant effects.

15. Changes to this policy

This Privacy Policy may be updated when website functions, service providers, mailing infrastructure, legal requirements or processing activities change. The current version will be published on this page with its revision date.