Publications and forms

Updated Off-Site Liability Exemption Publication Now Available

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The RR Program recently updated a fact sheet on the state’s off-site environmental liability exemptions, When Contamination Crosses a Property Line: The Off-Site Environmental Liability Exemption – Wis. Stat. §§ 292.12 and 292.13, Rights and Responsibilities of Off-site, Affected Property Owners, RR-589 Please recycle old versions of this DNR document and reference to the updated document moving forward.

The update also includes content from and  replaces, a publication titled, What Homeowners, Lenders and Realtors should know about Off-site Contamination, RR-927. More information about the off-site exemption, and RR Program contacts, are available on the DNR’s  web page, Off-site contamination – contamination that crosses property lines.

Updated Vapor Intrusion Guidance Now Available

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Following two years of effort and collaboration with external partners to update guidance on response actions for vapor intrusion, the Remediation and Redevelopment Program is pleased to announce that the document, Addressing Vapor Intrusion at Remediation and Redevelopment Sites in Wisconsin (PUB-RR-800), is available to the public. (To see the DNR’s responses to comments received during the public comment period for the draft, please visit click this link.)

Page one of updated publication

Addressing Vapor Intrusion at Remediation and Redevelopment Sites in Wisconsin, DNR publication RR-800

The guidance relates to the assessment, remediation and mitigation of the vapor intrusion pathway at contaminated sites in Wisconsin, for both chlorinated and petroleum substances.

Among numerous updates, the new guidance incorporates the changes made to the Wisconsin Administrative Code ch. NR 700 in 2013. It also includes information found in the EPA’s 2015 vapor intrusion guidance documents, and it provides additional details on mitigation, including principles found in the American Association of Radon Scientists and Technologists (AARST) 2017 national standard on vapor mitigation, SCM-SF-2017).

The RR-800 guidance was most recently updated in 2010.

Questions or comments about the new guidance can be addressed to Alyssa Sellwood.

Soil RCL Calculator Updates

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The Wisconsin DNR’s Remediation and Redevelopment Program has updated the numerical soil standards in its spreadsheet of residual contaminant levels (RCLs). The RCLs were determined using the recently-updated U.S. EPA regional screening level (RSL) web-calculator.

A summary of the changes to the direct-contact RCLs can be found in the new document, titled “RR Program’s Soil RCL Spreadsheet Update,” publication number DNR-RR-052f.

For more information and to access the RCL spreadsheet (macro and non-macro versions), visit the Resources for Environmental Professionals webpage and click on the “Soil RCLs” tab.

PECFA U&C Schedule #23 Available Online

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The Usual & Customary Cost Standardized Invoice and Task Reference Guide #23 are now available for January 2018 through June 2018 on the DNR’s PECFA web page on the Reimbursement tab. Please note the following updates:

  • New Task 5 – Subtask CR25 will provide for a maximum reimbursement of $1,250 for the submittal of a closure request when required to be submitted concurrently with a Site Investigation Report.
  • Task 7 clarification – Only one regulatory may be claimed per year for the required tax forms.
  • Task 18 – Obsolete
  • Task 26 – Obsolete
  • Task 27 now provides for three (3) claim prep charges per year for active scopes of work.
  • Task 31 – Clarification on consultant overnight per diems.

Please review the UCCS Task Reference Guide #23 for additional information.

PFAS Fact Sheets from ITRC

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Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of emerging contaminants known to impact groundwater and surface water. The information surrounding toxicity, laboratory methods, investigations, and remediation strategies is evolving, and the Interstate Technology and Regulatory Council (ITRC) recently published three technical factsheets summarizing current information on PFAS.  The fact sheets are available online.

These fact sheets specifically relate to:
1. History and Use
2. Regulations, Guidance, and Advisories
3. Naming Conventions and Physical and Chemical Properties

Later this month, ITRC plans to finalize three additional guidance documents on Fate and Transport, Site Characterization, and Remediation, which will be made available on the ITRC website.

Public Input Opportunity: PECFA Usual & Customary Standardized Invoice

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The Remediation and Redevelopment (RR) Program seeks your input on the Usual & Customary (U&C) Task Reference Guide #23 (RR-092) and on the Standardized Invoice #23 (RR-092a). Both documents can be viewed at the Wisconsin DNR’s web page for proposed program guidance.

Comments on these documents will be accepted through December 22, 2017.

Updates to Tasks 5, 7, 18, 26, 27 and 31 are included in the document and outlined in the public comment cover sheet.

The U&C Cost Schedule is a regular publication of the RR program and is updated twice a year. Updates generally consist of non-substantive language changes and clarification.

Comments on this document should be sent to Jenna Soyer at jenna.soyer@wisconsin.gov.

DNR Brownfields Report of Annual Accomplishments Now Available

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The Remediation and Redevelopment Program’s annual report to the US EPA of brownfields accomplishments, which details a year-long effort of outputs and outcomes funded by a federal grant, is now available online. The Section 128(a) Grant Final Accomplishments Report, for the reporting period of September 1, 2016 to August 31, 2017, highlights work completed in the previous funding year.

The “128(a) Final Report” includes a summary of the various metrics tracked during the year (Green Team meetings, outreach activities, etc.), highlights a number of successful cleanups and redevelopments from across the state, and features a number of important program improvements undertaken during the year.

Previous 128(a) reports can be found on the Brownfields Program web page.

 

Updates to RR Program Guidance on Submitting Documents; Advice on Using Fillable PDF Forms

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As the Remediation and Redevelopment Program strives to make site file records available electronically through its online resource, BRRTS on the Web (BOTW), we’ve updated our guidance for consultants to submit those records in the most timely and effective ways possible.

The Guidance for Submitting Documents to the Remediation and Redevelopment Program (RR-690) includes a number of updates. Consultants are encouraged to review the updated guidance. By following the recommendations in the guidance, consultants will help RR staff identify and review submittals in a timely manner.

If you have questions on how to submit documents to the RR Program, please contact a regional RR Program Environmental Program Associate (EPA).

The RR Program also reminds consultants that when saving or editing Program forms to use Adobe Acrobat software. This is especially important if the form will need to be edited before submitting to the DNR. You can download Adobe Acrobat Reader for free at https://get.adobe.com/reader/.

Open House “Q & A” on New Vapor Intrusion Guidance

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The Remediation and Redevelopment Program will host a two-hour “Q & A” regarding the agency’s new guidance on vapor intrusion. The open house event will take place on Tuesday, August 29, in Madison, and via teleconference at the same time.

The guidance – RR-800 – is currently available for written public comment through the DNR’s “proposed program guidance” web page; comment on the document will be accepted through September 8, 2017.

Subjects discussed during the “Q & A” session will not take the place of written comments on the document. Rather, the opportunity is meant to help further clarify the material for those who may have questions about the content, with hope of alleviating potential erroneous comments.

Details of the vapor intrusion “Q & A” open house are:

  • Date: Tuesday, August 29
  • Time: 9:00 – 11:00 CST
  • Location: DNR Central Office, Room G-09, 101 S. Webster St., Madison, WI 53707
  • Conference Call Number: 1-855-947-8255, Passcode: 6612745#

Vapor intrusion team leader Alyssa Sellwood and Policy and Technical Resources Section Chief Judy Fassbender will be available to answer questions and clarify issues for participants.

If you plan to attend in person, please notify Alyssa Sellwood by the close of the business day on Monday, August 28, so that building security can be prepared for your arrival.

Community Redevelopment Toolbox

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The latest version of ASTWMO’s Toolbox for Community Redevelopment, “A beginner’s guide to contaminated property redevelopment,” offers a five-step process to help local governments better understand the basic process of identification, assessment, investigation and cleanup.Clip Art

The Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials, Inc., (ASTSWMO), is a national organization founded in 1974. Its mission is to enhance and promote effective state programs and to affect relevant national policies for waste and materials management, environmentally sustainable practices, and environmental restoration.

The toolbox and examples are not Wisconsin-specific, but include good, basic information for anyone interested in cleanup and redevelopment issues.