PROTECTIVE CLEANUP STRATEGIES & OVERSIGHT
Can you dig it?
We love our environmental engineering peers, but their job is to dig into scientific and technical information regarding contamination molecules; not keeping tabs on agency overreach. For this reason, the most effective cleanup teams combine technical and legal expertise, and maintain an orientation towards efficient business outcomes.
Tellus lawyers have evolved this team approach into a fine art, balancing the roles of field remediation and ongoing agency interface, to “birddog” projects to completion: on-time and on-budget. Anyone who has dealt with regulatory agencies knows this is no easy task, yet it is essential for maintaining the cost-benefit calculus with distressed property investments.
Tellus lawyers have long-term, established relationships with excellent engineering teams, and with environmental agencies across the state of California (and in several other states). We bring tried and true relationships and processes to site cleanups of all size and complexity.
We also understand it is the lawyer’s role (and not the engineers’ role) to confront recalcitrant regulators in order to move projects to closure, and to provide succinct communications with client’s lenders, investment partners and insurance underwriters.
Representative Matters
Represented a publicly traded REIT in their acquisition of several contiguous parcels in an industrial corridor near San Francisco for construction of a large-scale Biosciences campus and mixed-use residential units, which included negotiation pursuant to the California Land Reuse and Revitalization Act (CLRRA). CLRRA provides environmental liability protection to non-polluters when they perform the prescribed cleanup. Tellus also oversaw the multi-year CLRRA cleanup action in coordination with CEQA and tribal consultation activities, and ongoing interface and coordination with construction teams, DTSC, environmental engineers, lenders and the Peninsula Joint Powers Board.
Assisted Real Estate Investment firm acquire and remediate large, formerly industrial parcel in Southern California pursuant to the California Land Reuse and Revitalization Act (CLRRA), which required ongoing coordination with client’s entitlement team, CEQA processes and active stakeholder and public involvement.
Assisted multiple clients address subsurface contamination resulting from legacy dry-cleaning releases and service station tenants due to leaking underground storage tanks (USTs) including agency and existing tenant communications regarding vapor intrusion risks and mitigations.
Supported several landlord owners of gas stations seeking cleanup of legacy contamination by parent corporations (e.g. Chevron, Shell, etc) based on indemnification requirements, obtained “comfort letters” from these petroleum corporations ensuring liability obligations were retained by them, drafted protective lease provisions, and assisted in enforcement of same, ongoing communications with cleanup agencies to ensure case closure was protective of landlord interests.