Two weeks ago I participated in the Ohio Brownfields Conference in Columbus, Ohio. 2016 marks the twentieth (20th) anniversary of Ohio’s Voluntary Action Program (VAP) which is implemented by Ohio EPA and is the primary regulatory program for cleanup of brownfields.
To mark the anniversary, Ohio EPA encouraged presenters to reflect on the success
Attorney General Mike DeWine should be commended for putting together a comprehensive manual regarding legal issues, resources and incentives available to assist with economic development. The manual is called the 2015 Ohio Economic Development Manual.
The Attorney General collaborated with a number of state agencies and local economic development organizations in putting together
In a novel case, the Court of Appeals (Second District Montgomery County) held that Ohio EPA had no duty to disclose knowledge of contamination to a buyer of a contaminated property, even though the Agency had records in its files documenting additional contamination. See, Ohio v. Republic Envrtl. Sys. (Ohio), Inc., 2015 WL 5783650 (Ohio
An environmental audit is a self-evaluation of current compliance with applicable environmental regulations. The audit is typically performed by an outside environmental consultant. However, more sophisticated businesses can utilize advanced electronic compliance tools or their own EHS personnel.
An audit can be wide in scope (i.e. compliance with all applicable regulations) or it can review
U.S. EPA has published in the Federal Register its action that removes the old Phase I standard (1527-05) from the "All Appropriate Inquiries" Rule (AAI). Until this action, AAI recognized both the old standard and the new standard- ASTM 1527-13.
The major differences between the old and new ASTM Phase I standard include:
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Last week, we hosted a very successful seminar covering commercial and industrial property redevelopment. I participated on a panel that included JobsOhio, the City of Cleveland and TeamNEO discussing brownfield redevelopment, in particular, incentives. A major focus of the discussions was the relatively new JobsOhio Revitalization Program.
I have worked with JobsOhio on
More than one environmental consultant has reported that Ohio EPA has changed its public records review procedures. Ohio EPA has centralized its document review process. It has developed a new public records request form that it asks any consultant requesting records to fill out (click here for the form).
After files are compiled
In real estate transactions it is not uncommon for the seller to provide the buyer a copy of prior a Phase I environmental assessment. The seller either ordered a Phase I in anticipation of the transaction or one may exist from a prior transaction involving the same property. Should the buyer be satisfied with this
On December 30th, the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finally took action trying to address the confusion it caused when it previously issued a final rule recognizing both ASTM 1527-05 and 1527-13 as appropriate standards for conducting Phase I assessment. A proper Phase I assessment is a requirement for establishing the Bona Fide Purchaser Defense
Over the weekend, there was a good blog post on Schnapf LLC Blog discussing which Phase I standard lawyers and consultants should use for at least the rest of 2013. Due to an unanticipated reversal by U.S. EPA, there is a gap right now between the current ASTM standard and EPA’s recognized standard for Phase