Why would an environmental assessment or audit be requested?
Environmental Site Assessments (Phase I & II ESA’s) are often requested by clients when they are considering mortgaging, valuing, or selling property. We work closely with owners or their agents prior to a purchase or a sale and look at the environmental issues to give an estimate the cost of remediation, or the depreciation effect these environmental liabilities might have on the value of the building. As an example, if there is asbestos present on the piping and on the ceilings and the building is valued at one million dollars, there might be $150,000 worth of asbestos abatement required. Some tenants will not occupy asbestos-containing buildings so that is very important information for a potential purchaser. Soil contamination and remediation of value of the building or site. Environmental Audit (often combined with a Health and Safety audit) looks much more at the current activities in a building or property which may lead to contamination of this site, exposure to workers to haza
