The purpose of a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) is to evaluate a property's potential for subjecting its buyers, lenders, insurers and secured creditors to any environmental liability. This liability may be caused by current or past business practices on that property or nearby properties. The Phase I ESA is performed in order to qualify the above parties for the "Innocent Landowner Defense" under the CERCLA (Superfund) liability law.
The primary objective of a Phase I ESA is to identify all Recognized Environmental Conditions (RECs) associated with the subject property. RECs are defined as the presence or likely presence of any hazardous substances or petroleum products on a property under conditions that indicate an existing release, a past release, or a material threat of a release into structures on the property or into the soil, groundwater, or surface water of the property. If RECs are found, the assessment indicates the extent of contamination and outlines possible remedial measures.
GEM Corp.’s Phase I ESA reports adhere to the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) Standard E-1527-05. This ASTM standard adheres to the new All Appropriate Inquiries (AAI) Rule set forth by the Environmental Protection Agency. The AAI Rule requires that an Environmental Professional conduct a Phase I ESA. Our staff meets the criteria of Environmental Professionals as established under the AAI Rule. |
