PA DEP Providing Tools to Help Public, Businesses Better Understand New
Environmental Covenants Law
HARRISBURG, Pa., Feb. 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A new Pennsylvania law
begins today that is designed to give residents and businesses greater
confidence that protective measures required as part of the state's
contaminated sites cleanup program will stay in place, even after properties
change hands and over long periods of time.
And, said Environmental Protection Secretary Kathleen A. McGinty, her agency
is ready with materials to help residents, municipalities and developers
better understand the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act.
"Pennsylvania has been a national leader in land recycling, and approximately
1,600 environmental remediation actions have been completed at contaminated
industrial and commercial sites since 2003," said McGinty. "Our new Uniform
Environmental Covenants Act will make it easier for DEP to track whether
measures taken to make the property safe are maintained over time. This
measure will protect the public health and give businesses the confidence they
need to invest in these sites and return them to productive use."
When contaminated sites are cleaned up under Pennsylvania's Land Recycling and
Environmental Remediation Standards Act, the remediation plans may control
on-site contaminants with physical barriers like water-tight caps, or limit
the property's use by prohibiting the use of well water for drinking.
However, such measures must remain in place and followed in order to protect
the public.
The new Uniform Environmental Covenants Act, or Act 68, was signed by Governor
Edward G. Rendell in December, and creates a legal covenant that is recorded
in the county where the property is located. The covenant is signed by the
property owner and DEP at the time the remediation measures are put in place.
The covenant -- which is perpetual until terminated through state law --
remains with the land, so whoever owns the property is subject to it.
DEP has developed tools to implement Act 68, including a model covenant and
model notice of environmental covenant. The agency is also working to develop
a publicly accessible Environmental Covenant Registry.
The registry will include information on the property's location, including
county, municipality, and other location information; the date the covenant
was recorded by a county's recorder of deeds; and a listing of the engineering
and institutional controls that were required for any cleanup conducted under
Pennsylvania's applicable environmental laws.
Using the registry will allow neighbors of remediated sites to determine
whether measures safeguarding their health are still in place, regardless of
the amount of time that has elapsed or number of owners associated with the
property.
For businesses, the key to the land recycling process is release from
liability once the contaminated site has been remediated in accordance with
state law. Prospective buyers and sellers of the property need to know that
any required engineering and institutional controls are in place so to
preserve the release from liability.
Act 68 is part of a national effort by states to standardize the creation,
documentation and enforceability of institutional controls on contaminated
sites. The new law affects Pennsylvania's Land Recycling and Environmental
Remediation Standards Act, the Storage Tank and Spill Prevention Act, the
Hazardous Sites Cleanup Act, the Clean Streams Law and the Solid Waste
Management Act.
Businesses operating in multiple states will have greater confidence given the
protection from liability available under this uniform approach.
For more information, or for copies of the model covenant and notice, visit
www.depweb.state.pa.us, keyword: Land Recycling, and click on "UECA" on the
right side of the page.
CONTACT:
Neil Weaver
(717) 787-1323
SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
Neil Weaver of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection,
+1-717-787-1323
