Phrase 2 ESA Site Assessment – What is it and how much does it cost?
What is a Phase 2 ESA – (Phase II ESA) Environmental Site Assessment ?
A Phase 2 ESA is a report that often (but not always) follows a Phase 1 (or Phase i, Preliminary Site Investigation). It involves intrusive sampling to test for contaminants. The purpose of a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment is to make a determination in relation to the risk of a site being contaminated. The Phase I ESA will recommend a Phase II ESA if it is believed there is a risk of contamination on a site, which requires further evaluation. This is one trigger for a Phase 2 ESA. In some circumstances, in sites with known high risks of being potentially contaminated, a Phase II ESA may be requested by the lender rather than undertaking a Phase 1 ESA first. This is because a Phase 1 ESA would recommend a Phase 2 ESA due to the known risks from a current or previous activity on the subject site, its history, known contamination on the site or adjacent to the subject site. Often a lender will request a Phase II ESA for properties which are considered high risk.
What does a Phase 2 Environmental Site Assessment (Phase II) ESA entail ?
A Phase 2 ESA is an assessment which undertakes Environmental Sampling to test for contamination which entails sampling a range of media such as soil, groundwater, soil gas or other media. For sites such as Gas Stations or other fuel storage sites both soil and groundwater sampling is required to analyse both the soil and groundwater for hydrocarbon contamination. Sometimes vapour sampling is undertaken under concrete slabs. Some other sites such as workshops, vehicle repair centres, body repair workshops, dry cleaners, foundries and other industrial businesses also often require soil and groundwater sampling for laboratory analysis. Groundwater flow direction is also evaluated through the use of several groundwater monitoring wells. This can assist in determining if contaminated groundwater is coming from off site or leaving a site and assists in determining potential impacts laterally and vertically of a groundwater contamination plume. Lateral and vertical delineation of contamination is required for both soils and groundwater should contamination be detected. This often entails the development of a 3 dimensional model of the subsurface geophysical conditions combined with the results of the Phase 2 ESA laboratory analysis and physical properties assessment of the soils and soil horizons.
What is the Cost of a Phase 2 ESA (Phase II Environmental Site Assessment) ?
The cost of a Phase 2 Environmental Site Assessment (sometimes termed a Detailed Site Investigation) depends on a number of factors. These include the size of the site, site history, types of potential contaminants (as outlined in the conceptual site model), geology, topography, site access for drilling, groundwater depth, type of drill rig required and any special access requirements or timing including sampling outside business hours. This just outlines a few of the wide ranging factors which influence the cost of a Phase II ESA. The number of samples required and the types of analytes being tested for also influences the cost.
Please call us for a discussion of your site and requirements and we are happy to provide you with a free quotation in Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Ontario.
