Environmental consultants need standard operating procedures in order to manage and control the risks of being sued and paying substantial defense costs and claims.  This is especially true for consultants performing Phase I Environmental Site Assessments, who have the difficult task of determining whether something constitutes recognized environmental conditions (“RECs”).   

Under ASTM E1527-05, Section 1.1.1, RECs are defined as “the presence or likely presence of any hazardous substances or petroleum products on a property under conditions that indicate an existing release, a past release, or a material threat of a release of any hazardous substances or petroleum products into structures on the property or into the ground, groundwater or surface water of the property.”

To read more about this RECs, please read Bill Wagner's recent blog post on Commonground.