Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessments
All Appropriate Inquiry

MacKenzie Environmental, LLC has been performing Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessments (ESA) since the early days of CERCLA in the mid 1980s. Today our Phase 1 ESA adheres to the new EPA guidelines outlined in 40 CFR Part 312 – Standards and Practices for All Appropriate Inquiries (AAI). Our Phase 1 report also complies with the new ASTM Standard; ASTM E1527-05 Standard Practice for Environmental Site Assessments. MacKenzie Environmental, LLC conducts its Phase 1 ESA on a nationwide basis by our staff of Environmental Professionals qualified under the new AAI rule.

Since 1986 CERCLA has provided property owners with the “innocent landowner” defense, which can protect an owner from cleanup liability for pre-existing contamination if the owner conducted AAI and if the results did not reveal the presence of contamination. The ASTM standard for conducting a Phase 1 ESA was developed to permit a property owner to qualify for the innocent landowner defense to CERCLA liability.

In 2002 Congress passed the Federal Brownfields Law, which amended the innocent landowner defense and added two new liability protections. The federal EPA standards outline the steps property owners must take to protect themselves from CERCLA cleanup liability down the road. 

MacKenzie Environmental, LLC has contracted with Environmental Data Resources Inc. (EDR) to provide comprehensive historical and regulatory data acquisition and management as part of its AAI and ASTM compliant Phase 1 ESA.   At a minimum our investigation and report includes the following components:

• Inquiry by an environmental professional
• Interviews with present and past owners, operators and occupants
• Historical use investigation
• Search for recorded environmental liens
• Government records review
• Visual inspections of the facility and of adjoining properties
• Specialized knowledge or experience on the part of the defendant
• The relationship of the purchase price to the value of the property, if not contaminated
• Commonly known information about the property
• The obviousness of the presence of contamination at the property, and the ability to detect the contamination by appropriate investigation

 

 

• Phase 1 Environmental
  Site Assessments
• Industrial Hygiene Services
  Asbestos Management
• Site Services
• Site Remediation Services