Brownfields

Governor Cuomo Proposes Sweeping Amendments to Brownfield Program

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[Note: This post will be periodically updated as new information becomes available about the proposed legislative changes ] Governor Andrew Cuomo unveiled his budget legislation today. As expected, the legislation proposed sweeping changes to the state Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP). The proposed legislation adopts the recommendations of the New York State Tax Reform and Fairness Commission […]

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NY Expects Record Number of Brownfield Cleanup Completions in 2014

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In 2012, New York legislature failed to meaningfully extend the sunset date for the brownfield cleanup program (BCP) tax credits. In that session, the legislature, only extended the expiration date from March 31, 2015 to December 31, 2015. Because BCP applicants must obtain certificates of completion (COC) from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) by the BCP

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1/3 of NY BCP Projects Fail to Obtain COCs in 2013 Due To Documentation Issues

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The New York State Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP) may offer lucrative tax credits but to paraphrase the old John Houseman commercial, BCP applicants earn their tax credits the hard way. The BCP is demanding program with rigorous cleanup procedures, robust public participation and lots of documentation requirements. The complexity of the BCP is further exacerbated

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EPA Recognizes E1527-13 But Preamble Raises Specter of Retroactive LIability For Past Phase 1 Reports that Did Not Assess Vapor Intrusion

Brownfields, CERCLA, common law, consultant malpractice, Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Environmental Due Diligence, vapor intrusion / By

On December 30th, the  federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a final rule in the Federal Register  (78 FR 79319) recognizing the new ASTM E1527-13 phase 1 standard practice as an approved method for complying with the All Appropriate Inquires (AAI) rule. As explained below, while the preamble to the final rule is an improvement to

EPA Recognizes E1527-13 But Preamble Raises Specter of Retroactive LIability For Past Phase 1 Reports that Did Not Assess Vapor Intrusion Read More »

New OER Brownfield Incentive Grant (BIG) Program To Be Limited By Project Size

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We previously discussed that the New York City Office of Environmental Remediation (OER) Brownfield Incentive Grant (BIG) program had become fully subscribed meaning that all of the funds appropriated for the program have been committed to projects. OER has been working on obtaining additional appropriation to fund new BIG applications. The good news is that OER has recently

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NYC OER To Issue Environmental Review and Assessment (ERA) letters

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One of the key challenges facing purchasers of contaminated property is that the Bona Fide Prospective Purchaser, Contiguous Property Owner and Innocent Purchaser liability protections that are available under the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA or Superfund) and similar state laws are self implementing. While EPA may occasionally enter into a

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NYS Tax Department Rules on Eligibility of Post-COC Costs for BCP Tax Credits

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During the Great Recession, many brownfield sites in the lost their project financing. In New York, sites that were remediated and received a Certificate of Completion (COC) remain valuable because owners have ten years to develop the sites and claim the lucrative qualified tangible property (QTP) tax credit (explained below). As market conditions have stabilized,

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Ct Allows Claim Agst Consultant For Missing Contamination at Lowe’s Site To Proceed

Brownfields, consultant malpractice, Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Environmental Due Diligence, environmental insurance, oil spills, Underground Storage Tanks / By

Some time ago, we discussed the $14MM lawsuit filed by Lowe’s Home Centers  against a consultant. Lowe’s alleged  that the consultant failed to identify all areas that had been contaminated with PCBs and the store opening was delayed because of complications associated with the previously unknown PCB-contaminated soil was improperly disposed. The matter eventually settled Another

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EPA Proposes to Approve E1527-13 As AAI

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EPA has published a notice in the federal register proposing that the E1527-13 will satisfy the All Appropriate Inquiries. EPA believes (mistakenly in our opinion) the proposed action is non-controversial. However, just in case the agency published a final direct rule and a proposed  rule . If EPA does not receive adverse comments by September

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Ct Says NJ Brownfield Agreement Not Enough to Establish Innocent Party Status

bankruptcy, Brownfields, CERCLA, Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Environmental Due Diligence, NJ Spill Act / By

The brownfield reforms that swept the country in the 1990s created new tools for developers of contaminated sites to help minimize their liability. Some of the reforms like the CERCLA Bona Fide Prospective Purchaser (BFPP) liability protection are self-implementing while others such as prospective purchaser agreements, covenants not to sue or letters stating that the developer

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