RE: Phase I Environmental Site Assessments and Lead Based Paint/Asbestos Surveys, Free Service Provided for Interested Communities
Dear municipality, town mayor, economic development director, planner, assessor, clerk, realtor, developer:
The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, Solid and Hazardous Waste Division, Voluntary Remediation (VRP) and Brownfields Assessment Programs (BAP) currently has grant funding available to provide free services including Phase I environmental site assessments (ESA) and testing for asbestos and lead-based paint.
What is a Phase I? A Phase I environmental site assessment provides an environmental history of a property’s uses over time. The assessment may help protect a purchaser or developer from liability. Additionally, the resulting report provides real, actionable information that can significantly help manage risk and anticipate project cost items as part of future proposed land use. The DEQ is also offering free testing for asbestos and lead-based paint.
The use of this service in your community can improve the value of vacant or abandoned properties by providing desirable redevelopment locations, and mitigating public health and safety concerns. By assessing properties in your community, we can remove any ‘unknowns’ related to site conditions that may be holding up the sale of the property or getting in the way of redevelopment in that area of your neighborhood, paving the way for redevelopment and reuse of these properties. Other benefits include local community revitalization, increased tax base, creation of new jobs, utilization of existing infrastructure, and the removal of blight.
Properties can include abandoned or vacant industrial buildings, former or current automotive repair shops, salvage yards, empty lots, metal shops, paint shops, and former schools or commercial buildings which may contain asbestos, and/or lead-based paint.
If you think there are sites in your community that could benefit from these services, please complete the attached application form, email back to me at carol.stark@wyo.gov and we will schedule a visit. We will also be working with communities, realtors, and developers in Wyoming in the next few months, perhaps in your community. We have an assessment contractor who will research the environmental history of properties with a Phase I assessment and can also test for asbestos and lead-based paint, if necessary.
Please feel free to forward this email to other small communities or anyone you think may be interested in this program. If you have any questions on the services or the form, please contact me at 307-777-8759 or carol.stark@wyo.gov.
Sincerely,
Carol Stark
VRP/BA Project Manager
WDEQ