On June 1, the Georgia Voluntary Remediation Program Act went into effect establishing, for the first time in Georgia, a Voluntary Remediation Program (VRP). The VRP is intended to encourage “voluntary,” “timely,” and “cost-effective” investigation and remediation of properties impacted by the release of hazardous substances. Unlike the Georgia Hazardous Site Response Act (“HSRA”), which requires cleanup of soil and groundwater contamination to established levels, VRP adopts a risk-based approach under which cleanup standards are determined on a site-specific basis, taking into account factors such as potential exposure and groundwater impacts.

The new VRP represents a substantial move away from inflexible, often arbitrary, “one size fits all” clean-up standards of HSRA. VRP allows for the consideration of cost- and risk- factors in fashioning remedies to suit particular properties. It also substantially reduces the often costly and time-consuming oversight from EPD that goes along with HSRA, allowing properties to be cleaned up more quickly and efficiently. For more information, please visit here or contact Phillip Hoover.