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Environmental Site Assessments |
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TRIVIA: The City of Niagara
Falls, New York purchased the residential
community of Love Canal in 1952 for the
“charitable” price of $1. Despite disclaimers in
their warranty deed, the seller, Hooker
Chemical, was fined $125 M in clean-up costs,
and the local citizens sued for $3 B. |
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Environmental Site Assessments |
PRE-PURCHASE LAND
INVESTIGATIONS
An environmental site assessment
is a pre-purchase process
required of banks and lending
institutions prior to buying
and/or financing property. A
Phase I ESA involves a
historic background search of
the property and surrounding
properties for pre-existing
problems. A Phase II is evoked
where the Phase I requires
confirmation of suspect historic
information, and a Phase III
seeks to define the full extent
of involvement.
The impact of environmental
pollutants/hazardous substances
on the value of property and its
associated liability can be
far-reaching, encompassing both
those who are innocent and those
who were not the direct cause of
the existing situation.
Ignorance is not a defense, and
the best protection for all
parties concerned is the
completion of a state-of-the-art
environmental site assessment.
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Typical
Components of a Phase I
Environmental Site Assessment:
Environmental Setting
Historic Usage of Property
Regulatory Agency Reviews
Site Reconnaissance
Interviews
Other
Concerns That May, or May Not,
Be Required:
Asbestos-Containing Building
Materials
Mold Growth on Building
Structures
Threatened and Endangered
Species
Critical and Unique Habitats
Buildings/Structures of Historic
Value
Archeological Resources
Wetlands
Wild and Scenic Rivers
Coastal Dunes and Beaches |
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