Environmental Considerations for Working with Oregon Brownfields
Posted by Brent Jorgensen on Friday, May 29th, 2009
Brownfield Cleanup & Remediation
Creekside has obtained over 30 “No Further Action” (NFA) Determinations for our clients in the last 6 years on properties that required environmental assessment and “clean closure.” Below is an outline of a presentation we recently gave at Portland State University’s Hatfield School of Government.
Key Brownfield Legislation
Federal
American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009
“Small Business Liability Relief & Brownfields Revitalization Act”-2002
State (Oregon)
HB 3352 Recycled Lands Act, 1995
HB 3724 Provides Public Funding, 1997
Oregon Sustainability Exec. Order , 2000
PPA, Limits Purchaser Liability for cleanup
City (Portland)
Fed Grants: $400,000 for Assessment; $180,000 for Cleanup
American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009
$300 M – Emissions reduction
$100 M – Brownfields Cleanup
$600 M – HW Cleanup (Superfund Sites)
$200 M – Leaking USTs
$6 Billion – Water Quality / Wastewater Improvements
Brownfield Process
- Interest in a Specific Site
- Site Investigation
- Reporting Contamination
- Remedial Action Work Plan
- Current & Future Land Use
- Environmental Land Use Restriction
- Soil Management Plan
- Liability Protection
Site Interest
- Community Benefit
- Neighborhood Revitalization
- Grant Money Available
- Contamination is minimal
- Profit
Site Investigation
- Recognized Environmental Conditions & COPC
- Operations: gas station, landfill, auto shop, steel mill, dry cleaner, ag plant, etc.
- Features: ASTs, USTs , UICs, oil-water separators …
- Agency Lists: Confirmed or suspected release (ECSI)
- Offsite sources – air, groundwater, surface water
- COPC – TPH, VOCs, PCBs, metals, pesticides, etc.
Reporting Contamination
- Do contaminants exceed regulatory levels?
- Seek legal opinion
- Be accurate
- Reporting deadlines
- May change project direction
Remedial Action Work Plan
- Health & safety
- Strategy to resolve
- Methods to be used
- Implementation plan
GW / air monitoring
- Quality Control
- Schedule for completion
Cleanup Costs & Timeline
- Removal Action ($25,000 – $10 Million)
- Residual Risk Assessment ($5,000 – $100,000)
- Soil Management Plan ($5,000 – $10,000)
- GW Monitoring ($5,000 – $25,000 per yr)
- Est. Cost: $40,000 – $10 M
- Schedule: 3 months – 2 yrs
Land Use
- Current
- Planned
- Allowed (City)
- Restrictions / Cleanup
- Deed restriction
- EE&S (terms on deed)
- Soil Management Plan
- SW Management Plan
Soil Management Plan
- Establishes protocol
- Provides guidance
- Outlines regulatory requirements
- Minimize risk / exposure
- Agency approved
Liability Protection
- Small Business Liability Relief & Brownfields Revitalization Act – 2002
- Purchasers Agreement
- Due Diligence Required
- Protects New Owners
- Commitment to Cleanup
Who’s Responsible and Who Pays for Cleanup?
- Current / Past Site Owners Operators
- Insurance Companies
- Suppliers
- Future Developers
- Tax Payers (State / Fed Agencies, Orphan Sites)
