Thursday, August 26, 2004, marked a truly historic moment for the environmental site assessment industry. On this date, the US EPA proposed the first federal standard for “all appropriate inquiries”—the term used for the investigation into a property’s potential for environmental contamination prior to purchase. By year-end 2005, the developing federal standard will be promulgated into federal law, changing the forces that govern the way environmental due diligence is conducted significantly in some respects. The AAI law will establish specific regulatory requirements that a property owner (and the owner’s environmental consultant) must follow to determine the previous ownership, uses and environmental conditions of a property for the purposes of qualifying for certain landowner liability protections under CERCLA. Within the proposed rule is text that will not only dictate who can perform Phase I environmental site assessments (ESAs) in the future, but also calls for significant changes in how ESAs can be performed—from historical research documentation to reviews of local and tribal government records to documentation of data gaps. As such, it is imperative for anyone conducting Phase I environmental site assessments to stay up-to-date on this important new ruling as it nears promulgation. At this workshop, attendees will learn about the implications of the new federal environmental due diligence standard so that they can prepare for any necessary changes to their Phase I practices now, rather than later.

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