Client Alert Newsletter

New Jersey LSRP Program Gets Underway;
NJDEP Issues Extensive Site Remediation Reform Regulations

With the potential for more efficient processing of site remediation cases in New Jersey, "interim" regulations implementing the Licensed Site Remediation Professional ("LSRP") Program established under the Site Remediation Reform Act ("SRRA") went into effect on November 4, 2009. At that time, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection ("NJDEP") issued an extensive regulatory package addressing how the LSRP program will work and providing for new annual case fees, permits and fees for engineering and institutional controls, mandatory and regulatory timeframes for completing various stages of a remediation, modifications to the agency's technical regulations and more.

Most importantly, with limited exceptions, any party initiating a site remediation on or after November 4 must hire an LSRP to oversee the case and NJDEP will no longer provide full departmental oversight of and issue no further action letters for those cases. Instead, an LSRP will issue a response action outcome ("RAO") when the remediation is complete (or has advanced far enough to be governed by the new remedial action permits for soil or groundwater remedies to be issued by NJDEP). A new limited class of "direct oversight cases" remains subject to full NJDEP oversight with new and more stringent requirements. Pre-existing cases may continue under the old NJDEP oversight regime without an LSRP until May 7, 2012, although the new regulations allow those cases to "opt-in" to the LSRP program, with NJDEP approval. The decision as to whether to opt-in to the new LSRP program could have significant consequences.

The interim regulations include (1) Administrative Requirements for the Remediation of Contaminated Sites ("ARRCS") that implement the LSRP program and address critical procedural issues integral to the many other SRRA reforms, (2) extensive changes to the NJDEP's Technical Requirements for Site Remediation, including key changes to the requirements for dealing with immediate environmental concern conditions such as vapor intrusion and potable well contamination and (3) modifications to the regulations under the Industrial Site Recovery Act ("ISRA") and the regulated underground storage tank program. These interim regulations will apply until final regulations are issued which must be done prior to November 2010. NJDEP is also issuing many new and revised guidance documents that will apply to investigatory and cleanup activities and forms that must accompany all submissions, whether by an LSRP or a non-LSRP.

Further details concerning the various reforms enacted under SRRA can be found in our March 18, May 12 and November 12 Special Alerts.