The bill amends the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act to enhance the Department's authority in managing environmental contamination and remedial actions. It removes previous limitations on the Department's discretion in approving response activities, allowing for a more flexible remediation approach that prioritizes public health and environmental safety. New requirements for remedial actions are introduced, emphasizing the need for cleanup criteria based on land use and human health risk assessments. The bill also clarifies the criteria for selecting remedial actions, allowing exceptions when compliance with certain standards is technically infeasible or when the environmental impact of compliance outweighs the benefits. Additionally, it mandates the use of updated toxicity values from recognized sources to ensure that cleanup criteria are based on the best available science.

Further amendments focus on the assessment and cleanup of hazardous substances, particularly polychlorinated dibenzodioxin and dibenzofuran congeners, clarifying their assessment regarding volatilization. The bill introduces provisions for site-specific criteria that reflect the toxicity or exposure risks of hazardous substances and allows for alternative methods to demonstrate compliance with cleanup standards. It also modifies groundwater contamination monitoring, introducing alternative monitoring points and sentinel monitoring to ensure compliance with surface water quality standards. The bill outlines requirements for land and resource use restrictions, ensuring the integrity of containment barriers and specifying the conditions for restrictive covenants. Overall, the amendments aim to enhance the effectiveness of hazardous substance management while ensuring robust environmental protection.

Statutes affected:
Senate Introduced Bill: 324.20118