Prospective Tenant's Environmental Checklist
• Step 1: Gather some inexpensive information. While
a tenant might think of starting with a Phase I investigation, there
are commercial services that, for a few hundred dollars, will gather
information from various existing environmental databases to provide an
idea of the historical uses of hazardous materials at and around a
specific property. Understand that these reports are only as good as
the information that was included in the databases, many of which are
no longer maintained by the agencies that created them. For example, a
manufacturing facility a short distance away with a history of
environmental releases might not have any impact on a nearby facility
if groundwater flows in the opposite direction from the site. As a
result, often times these reports raise more questions than they
answer. An EP may be required to do site reconnaissance and to
meaningfully interpret the data, but a focused investigation, rather
than a Phase I report, may be far more efficient both in terms of time
(it can take 4-6 weeks to get a fully compliant Phase I report) and
expense.
Using historical information alone is problematic if
the target site is located in or adjacent to current or former
industrial areas where manufacturing, heavy trucking, or rail
activities have occurred since these are areas where releases of
chemicals are common. Similarly, in suburban areas where there seems to
be a proliferation of small and mid-size shopping centers, it is almost
inevitable that a gas station or dry cleaning operation is or was
located nearby. To determine if these potential sources are a threat to
development, a detailed review of agency files might provide the
answer. In most cases, though, site developers will need to take
samples to determine if the target site has been impacted by a nearby
source. However, even armed only with information from an inexpensive
database search, a prospective tenant may be able to negotiate
favorable lease provisions, offering some protections in the event
contamination is uncovered or agreeing to share the cost of site
testing with the landlord.
• Step 2: Determine if soil or groundwater sampling is necessary.
If the tenant knows or has a reason to suspect that historical
operations could have contaminated the soil or groundwater at the
prospective site or adjacent properties, then it might also make sense
to obtain access to the property and take soil, soil gas, and
groundwater samples. Often, environmental sampling can be combined with
soils testing and geotechnical investigations, further reducing the
incremental cost. The benefit of obtaining samples even applies if you
are only planning to move into a pre-existing facility and do not plan
to disturb soil or groundwater; vapor intrusion is even more a threat
from groundwater contamination in older structures that may have cracks
in the foundation, separation at bearing walls, and pathways such as
utility corridors that can facilitate the migration of vapors from the
subsurface entering into the building.
• Step 3: Determine if further investigation is warranted.
Depending on historical uses of nearby property and the availability
(or lack thereof) of actual soil and groundwater data, it may make
sense to obtain samples to determine if vapor intrusion is a potential
problem. A word of caution: Appropriate sampling for vapor intrusion
and corresponding safe levels of contaminants in indoor air are issues
being hotly debated at the federal, state, and local levels. So taking
samples to determine impacts to indoor air may not provide a definitive
answer. Still, there may be circumstances where sampling makes sense to
either assist in providing a level of comfort to the prospective tenant
or to rule out a prospective location from further consideration. In
any event, assistance from EPs with a background and understanding of
vapor intrusion issues is strongly recommended.
The Bottom Line
Information
about the soil and groundwater underlying a leased facility is an
important factor in deciding whether to enter into a long-term
agreement and how to negotiate the terms of the lease if adverse
conditions are found that are capable of being mitigated at a
reasonable cost. In some instances, a relatively inexpensive survey of
available environmental information can provide a prospective tenant
with some useful information that will assist in its due diligence and
in negotiations with the landlord. But there are also situations where
tenants may need to know more about the property and surrounding sites.
In those instances, obtaining environmental samples can provide
information that will avoid undue delay in development or unexpected
costs.
Finally, there may be circumstances in which the
additional analysis provided by a compliant Phase I investigation
offers certain benefits or in which additional environmental sampling
might be required. The prospective tenant needs to balance the cost of
obtaining additional information with the risks of entering into a
lease if there are significant questions about the condition of the
underlying property and its impacts on future site operations.
Generally,
unless the target site and adjacent and upgradient properties are
totally clear of all suspected releases, at least preliminary site
testing should be conducted to determine if there is soil, soil gas, or
groundwater contamination at the site. Often, some screening level
testing can be done at only a minimal incremental cost.
Jonathan
W. Redding is an attorney and chair of the Environmental Practice Group
at Wendel, Rosen, Black & Dean LLP and has extensive experience
assisting clients with environmental due diligence and related issues.
Greggory C. Brandt is an attorney and also a member of the
Environmental Practice Group. Visit their firm's website at www.wendel.com.
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