Environmental attorney Thomas Braun was quoted in Waste360 in an article titled “Legal Considerations Around Brownfield Remediation,” published August 13, 2019. The article discusses how several states are apportioning responsibility for cleanup of contaminated landfills while taking into consideration the risk taken on by developers, landfill owners and jurisdictions involved in such projects.
The protections and incentives created by the states include such mechanisms as liability exemptions, in which the state will assume the risk involving past, current and future owners, or the provision of tax credits for cleanup and redevelopment – in New York, for example, landfill owners receive credit for up to 50 percent of the expense of cleanup.
Minnesota, where Braun is based, has taken the former approach, issuing a “No Further Action” letter to parties involved in remediation who clean up contamination and receive state approval but also offering a “No Association Determination” letter for buyers and lessees who were not responsible for existing contamination and show that their proposed actions will not worsen it. According to Braun, “... parties may request this letter even if they will not engage in remediation activities.”