Top Ten Environmental Issues Outline
William Bates, Trileaf
Adam Goebel, Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC
1. Introduction: Top Ten Environmental issues list, ranked in order of ‘frequency’ – 2
minutes
a. Gas Stations
b. Drycleaners
c. Underground/Aboveground Storage Tanks
d. Automotive Repair Facilities
e. National Priority List (NPL)
f. Brownfields
g. Wetlands
h. Asbestos-Containing Materials (ACM)
i. Lead-Based Paint (LBP)
j. Airborn Volatile Organic Compounds (“Vapor Intrusion”)
2. Gas Stations (Slides 3, 4) – 6 minutes
a. Typically easy to identify via a quick google earth search if they are currently
active.
i. The main point of concern is the UST tank pit, typified by a concrete
patch that is grey-white while the rest of the parking lot is paved.
b. Historic gas stations are much harder, but generally are identified in historic aerial
photographs by their dispenser islands (USTs not regulated until 1980s in most
states, so regulatory records may not have anything)
3. Drycleaners (Slides 5, 6) – 6 minutes
a. PCE/TCE (cleaning solvent also known as “Perc”) are non-natural, dense,
nonaqueous phase liquid (“DNAPL”). As such, it leaches quickly through shallow
groundwater directly to the deep aquifers, and spreads quickly. It can go great
distances.
b. Historic drycleaners often have a white patch on the pavement behind the back
door – 5-gallon buckets of Perc just pitched out back.
c. Plume distance can be in miles and cover entire cities.
4. USTs/ASTs (Slides 7-10) – 14 minutes
a. How problematic they will be depends upon many factors, including:
i. When they were installed
ii. Whether they have any secondary/tertiary/quaternary containment barriers
or leak-detection
iii. How often they are inspected and when their last inspection was (tanktightness tests)
iv. Volume
v. Proximity
vi. Condition
vii. Contents
viii. Regulatory history
b. Tanks only started being regulated in 1980s, so tanks installed on parcels before
that time are oftentimes still in place, and might even still contain liquid. We find
these by:
i. “Bare Spots” (stressed vegetation) – USTs can change the soil acidity and
therefore change the surface vegetation characteristics/species
ii. Tank vents/manholes/fill-ports
iii. Historic records
5. Auto Repair Facilities (Slides 11-13) – 9 minutes
a. Typically have USTs/ASTs, used or waste oil, antifreeze, etc.
b. Many times the housekeeping is poor because no community inspection is
required below a certain volume
c. Junk cars  heavy metals, VOCs in soils
6. National Priority List (Slides 14, 15) and Brownfields – 6 minutes
a. EPA has a list of their priorities (“CERCLIS” NPL). Anything not priority
becomes “Not Eligible for NPL” but may still be very problematic.
b. Case study: Indiana Medical History Museum, downtown Indianapolis
i. Human burials
ii. Unregistered tanks
iii. Asbestos
iv. Lead
v. Medical waste
7. Wetlands (Slides 16-20) – 6 minutes
a. Not an AAI/ASTM, issue, but rather a Chapter 404 Clean Water Act issue
b. Definition of Wetland
c. Jurisdictional differences
d. Desktop screening vs. field screening (NWI vs. wetland delineation)
8. Asbestos (Slide 21) – 4 minutes
a. Also non-ASTM, but OSHA
b. Where it comes from
c. OSHA considerations
d. What to look for
9. Lead-Based Paint (Slide 22) – 4 minutes
a. Also non-ASTM, but can be CERCLA
b. Why it is used (current regs)
c. OSHA/CERCLA considerations
d. What to look for
10. VOCs/Vapor Intrusion (Slides 23-24) –2 minutes
a. What it is
b. Where it comes into play
c. How to test for it
11. Recap / closing – 1 minute