On December 30, 2013, EPA issued its final rule, effective immediately, adopting the ASTM E1527-13 standard for Phase I Environmental Site Assessments as its preferred approach. While EPA has not, as of this writing, eliminated the 2005 standard from the rule, it has clearly stated that is the next step in this odyssey. The Federal Register notice, http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2013-12-30/pdf/2013-31112.pdf, states repeatedly that the 2013 Standard is the preferred alternative.
So what does this mean?
- It means that all Phase I ESAs going forward should use the 2013 Standard.
- It means there will be new ways to talk about past releases, depending on whether they have been resolved completely or resulted in either land use limitations or institutional controls.
- It means that file reviews will be standard to clarify entries in database research. That will likely raise costs somewhat in some cases.
- It also means that discussion of potential or past releases must consider the potential for vapor migration, to the extent that is possible with the limited investigation possible under the cost and time constraints of a Phase I.