Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) Services

Conducting a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) has become a common business practice for purchasers and lenders involved in commercial real estate. Completion of a Phase I ESA during the due diligence period can provide affected parties protection under the Innocent Purchaser Defense, CERCLA/SARA, providing that "all appropriate inquiry" was taken at the time of acquisition. Blackshare's ESA is designed to do just that.

Blackshare Environmental Solutions’ staff has completed literally thousands of ESAs on a wide range of property types. Sites that are more complex, such as large manufacturing or processing plants, may required a more detailed study. We can tailor the scope to match the type of facility.

Phase I

Our Phase I ESA is conducted to meet ASTM E-1527 for Phase I environmental site assessments. The scope includes an assembly of information related to the historical uses of the site (such as aerial photographs and a review of regulatory agency environmental records and databases), a site reconnaissance, interview(s) with person(s) familiar with the property and its history, and assembly of the information above into a comprehensive report.

RECs

The goal of a Phase I ESA is to identify Recognized Environmental Conditions (RECs). A REC is defined in the ASTM standard 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 of any hazardous substances or petroleum products into structures on the property on into the ground, ground water, or surface water of the property”. Examples of conditions that constitute RECs include containers of stored hazardous materials, evidence of underground storage tanks, transformers which could contain PCBs, stained soil, distressed vegetation, pits, signs of fill or areas where wastes may be buried, etc.

Many times the presence of a REC warrants further investigation (Site Investigation/Correction Action) to confirm or discount the presence of the material and quantify risk.

Supplemental Services

Services sometimes performed in conjunction with a Phase I ESA are:

Limited asbestos survey
Compliance review – in the event that a business as a going concern, along with the real estate upon which it is located, is being purchased
Baseline assessment – collection and analysis of samples to establish and document the environmental condition of the real estate for future liability protection

AAI

AAI stands for “All Appropriate Inquiry”. Until recently, the EPA had never attempted to define AAI. The EPA has drafted language for AAI which is currently under comment/review. When it is finalized, we will adopt any provisions necessary to comply with the final AAI rule.