People performing remediation projects in Indiana must be
intimately familiar with recent guidance released by the Indiana
Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) that describes how
IDEM intends to comply with new state legislation governing
investigation and cleanup projects in Indiana. A copy of this guidance
is attached. IDEM also just
announced the availability of a useful IDEM training webinar
discussing this guidance. It can be accessed at http://www.webinar.in.gov/train1162 and is approximately two and a half hours long.
The new legislation (referred to as HEA 1162) was passed in the
2009 General Assembly and mandates that IDEM allow more true
"risk-based" approaches to remediation projects that use
risk management techniques including institutional controls,
environmental restrictive covenants, and the newly-created
environmental restrictive ordinances. HEA 1162 materially changes
how IDEM approaches remediation projects, and the attached guidance
describes how IDEM intends to fulfill these new statutory mandates.
According to IDEM, the guidance is meant to serve as a bridge
between IDEM's 2001 RISC Technical Resource Guidance
Document and a future version of that Tech Guide. For now, the
2001 Tech Guide and the attached guidance will be used in
tandem.
The newly-enacted HEA 1162 strengthens the commitment to risk-based
remediation by extending these risk-based principles to virtually
all state remediation programs. In addition to affecting remedial
options, HEA 1162 also affects the investigation phase of
remediation projects by allowing investigations which are tailored
to develop only that information necessary to perform the
remediation.
Barnes & Thornburg attorneys were involved in the development
of HEA 1162 and worked with IDEM in connection with the attached
guidance. In general, the guidance is a good faith effort by IDEM
to incorporate HEA 1162's legal commands into its programs.
Familiarity with HEA 1162 and its implementing guidance is
essential for anyone doing remediation work in Indiana. Risk-based
remediation projects allowed by HEA 1162 can be much more cost
effective than traditional remediation approaches and yet provide
comparable protection to human health and the
environment.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
