Monday, June 6, 2011

Why Phase 1 ESA's will take longer and will cost more in Ontario

As we discussed in the last blog Ontario’s new environmental legislation, Ontario Regulation 153/04, Records of Site Condition, will become law on July 1st.

One of the main goals of the new legislation is to "streamline" the site assessment process, thereby allowing contaminated properties to be remediated more efficiently.

However for Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessments (ESA) “streamline” does not mean “quicker” or “less expensive”. Read on.

Under the new regulations the QP (“Qualified Person”) who prepares the report must consider the impact of all properties within a 250 metre radius of the subject, what is known as "Phase One Study Area". While it has always been within a QP’s discretion to investigate any property near the subject, in practice most Phase 1’s only considered the immediate neighbours.

And given that the QP must research both the current and historical usage of every property within 250 metres, this alone will significantly increase the time and cost of a Phase 1 ESA. Regardless of whether it is a major Brownfield cleanup in Hamilton or a simple commercial condo sale in Toronto.  

A recent survey of leading environmental engineering firms in Ontario indicated the average Phase 1 ESA will take 10 days longer to prepare, and will see costs increase from an average price of $3200 to over $5000 (in some cases firms are simply doubling their prices).   

Next blog we will look at an even greater impact on environmental costs for a typical commercial/industrial transaction: “Potentially Contaminating Activities”.

4 comments:

  1. Excellent overview, it pointed me out something I didn’t realize before. I should encourage for your wonderful work. I am hoping the same best work from you in the future as well. Thank you for sharing this information with us.

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  2. Thanks for discussing about this important topic. Environmental site assessment phase 1 plays a vital role in physical improvement of the property. Some online sites nowadays provide this service.

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  3. Thanks for sharing all these helpful information. phase 1 environmental site assessment cost Phase 1 environmental site assessment cost may vary with different companies. However, online environmental site assessment services are the best as you can compare the prices of different websites and choose the best one according to your budget and specifications.

    ReplyDelete