New Procedures for Issuing Technical Opinions About Contaminated Site Management
Recently, Board Decision No. 106/2022, which was issued by the Environmental Agency of the State of São Paulo, was published. The board decision establishes procedures to be followed regarding the issuance of technical opinions related to the management of contaminated sites and the reuse of contaminated sites and the issuance of grants for groundwater collection wells in the areas surrounding contaminated sites.
"Technical Opinion”
According to the board decision, a technical opinion is a technical report requested by an interested party, individual or legal entity, on certain stage(s) of proceedings involving contaminated sites and water grants related to water collection around contaminated sites.
Several Types
Technical opinions can be requested in several stages of a management proceeding of contaminated sites, such as:
(i) A Preliminary Assessment and Confirmatory Investigation (in cases involving potential contamination)
(ii) An Intervention Plan for the Reuse of Contaminated Areas
(iii) Outcomes from the Implementation and Execution of Intervention Measures
(iv) Water Grant Requests
(v) An Evaluation of a Deactivation and Demobilization Plan
(vi) An Intervention Plan for a Critical Contaminated Area
(vii) An Intervention Plan for Contaminated Areas with Confirmed Risk
(viii) A Preliminary Assessment, Confirmatory Investigation, Detailed Investigation and Risk Assessment.
A Mandatory Requirement
The board decision also requires interested parties to request applicable technical opinions for specific situations. For example, for a construction project on a contaminated site, a technical opinion related to an Intervention Plan for the Reuse of Contaminated Site must be requested in order to substantiate the issuance of demolition and construction permits by the municipal body and the environmental agency’s Rehabilitation Terms for the proposed new use. This technical opinion will be based on an analysis of both the project and the contamination and of how safety issues will be addressed.
If the Technical Opinion is unfavorable to the interested party, an administrative defense may be filed within 15 days. In the event of an unfavorable administrative decision on that defense, an administrative appeal may also be filed, within 15 days.
The Environmental Team of Tauil & Chequer Advogados in association with Mayer Brown is available for further information.
