GENERAL OVERVIEW

ASTM Committee E50 on Environmental Assessment, Risk Management and Corrective Action was formed in 1990. E50 meets twice a year, usually in April and October, with about 70 members attending three days of technical meetings. The Committee, with a current membership of approximately 900, has five technical subcommittees that have jurisdiction over 35 standards published in the Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Volume 11.04. Information on this subcommittee structure and portfolio of approved standards and Work Items under development is available from the List of Subcommittees, Standards and Work Items. These standards have and continue to play a preeminent role in all aspects of commercial real estate transactions, corrective action, pollution prevention, and beneficial use. In addition, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state EPA agencies reference standards from the committee.

ACTIVITIES, PRODUCTS, AND SERVICES

The standards development activities under Committee E50 generally fall under five areas.

Subcommittee E50.01 on Storage Tanks develops standards for environmental protection as related to storage, testing, and management of tanks that are designed and built to contain petroleum or hazardous substances.

Subcommittee E50.02 on Real Estate Assessment and Management develops standards for real estate assessment and management. Well-known examples of these standards include:

• E 1528, Practice for Limited Environmental Due Diligence: Transaction Screen Process;

• E 1527, Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Process; and

• E 1903, Guide for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase II Environmental Site Assessment Process.

Among E50’s indoor assessment standards are:


• E 2018, Guide for Property Condition Assessments: Baseline Property Condition Assessment Process;

• E 2308, Guide for Limited Asbestos Screens of Buildings; and

• E 2418, Guide for Readily Observable Mold and Conditions Conducive to Mold in Commercial Buildings: Baseline Survey Process.

Subcommittee E50.03 on Pollution Prevention/Beneficial Use develops standards on this topic; two of its more familiar standards are:

• E 2060, Guide for Use of Coal Combustion Products for Solidifications and Stabilization of Inorganic Wastes; and

• E 2277, Standard Guide for Design and Construction of Coal Ash Structural Fills.

Standards for environmental protection as it relates to corrective action at petroleum and chemical release sites fall under the scope of Subcommittee E50.04 on Corrective Action. The subcommittee has developed three risk-based corrective action (RBCA) standards:

• E 1739, Guide for Risk-Based Corrective Action Applied at Petroleum Release Sites;

• E 2081, Guide for Risk-Based Corrective Action; and

• E 2205, Guide for Risk-Based Corrective Action for Protection of Ecological Resources.

Environmental risk management standards are developed by Subcommittee E50.05 on Environmental Risk Management. Examples of standards maintained by this subcommittee include:

• E 2107, Practice For Environmental Regulatory Compliance Audits;

• E 2137, Guide for Estimating Monetary Costs and Liabilities for Environmental Matters;

• E 2173, Guide for Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities; and

• E 2365, Standard Guide for Environmental Compliance Performance Assessment.

Publications: Compilations and Manuals

Committee E50 has published a number of compilations and manuals on environmental site assessment. The compilations include:

• ASTM Standards on Assessment and Remediation of Petroleum Release Sites;

• ASTM Standards on Environmental Assessment (available in print or on CD-ROM);

• ASTM Standards on Environmental Site Assessments for Commercial Real Estate;

• ASTM Standards Related to the Phase II Environmental Site Assessment Process, Second Edition (Print and CD-ROM); and

• Identifying, Defining, and Disclosing Environmental Liabilities.

The manuals are:

• MNL 43ESA, Technical Aspects of Phase I/ II Environmental Site Assessments; and

• MNL 43, Technical Aspects of Phase I/ II Environmental Site Assessments.

For a list of publications sponsored by Committee E50, click here.

Training

Committee E50 conducts training courses related to its work on environmental site assessment standards, including sessions on:

• Activity and Use Limitations, also known as Institutional Controls, Deed Restrictions, or Land Use Controls, Featuring E 2091, Guide for Use of Activity and Use Limitations, Including Institutional and Engineering Controls;

• ASTM Phase I & Phase II Environmental Site Assessment Processes;

• Environmental Regulatory Compliance Audits;

• Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Practices for Commercial Real Estate: Transaction Screen and Phase I Site Assessment;

• Phase II Environmental Site Assessment Process;

• Property Condition Assessments Featuring E 2018, Guide for Property Condition Assessments: Baseline Property Condition Assessment Process;

• Remediation of Ground Water by Natural Attenuation at Petroleum Release Sites;

• Risk-Based Corrective Action (RBCA) Applied at Petroleum Release Sites, Featuring E 1739, Guide for Risk-Based Corrective Action Applied at Petroleum Release Sites;

• Risk-Based Corrective Action for Chemical Releases; and

  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency All Appropriate Inquiry Rule and the New ASTM Phase I Standard


    • PARTICIPATING AS A MEMBER ON THE COMMITTEE

    AASTM International opens its doors to all technical experts with an interest in the standardization process. As a member of ASTM Committee E50, you will be exposed to the robust resources and member benefits included below that have helped make ASTM a worldwide standards development leader for more than a century:

    • Network with industry professionals worldwide;

    • Receive one free volume of the Annual Book of ASTM Standards (in print or CD);

    • Use Internet-based Standards Development Forums and electronic balloting;

    • Receive discounts on all ASTM publications;

    • Keep up to date through a free subscription to ASTM’s bimonthly magazine, Standardization News, and a monthly electronic newsletter;

    • Benefit from reduced fees for attendance at ASTM symposia and technical workshops;

    • And more.

    Becoming a member can be accomplished from the website by selecting Join ASTM. Benefits include complimentary standards, discounts on material, voting privileges, and access to the rapidly changing standards information that affects your technical community. ASTM membership is $75 (USD) a year. Members receive a volume of the published standards of the Committee.

    Members can participate from anywhere because of ASTM’s customized web-based systems. The best way to contribute as a member is to (1) participate in task group activities that are of interest (both virtually and in person), and (2) vote on ballots and provide feedback and recommendations. To participate in standards activities, start by identifying Work Items of interest by reviewing the List of Subcommittees, Standards, and Work Items on the E50 home page. Contact task group leaders for those areas of interest by reviewing the Work Item summary pages and securing contact information available through the on-line roster in the member area. To make the most of your voting and participation overall, be sure to stipulate which specific subcommittees you wish to participate in when you join so that you will receive notices of ballots that open within these groups.

    STAKEHOLDERS

    ASTM policy requires that there be a balance of interests at the standards development table. The standards development process is open and it enables all stakeholders from the industry a voice in the shaping of a standard. The only requirement is that the producers cannot outnumber the users. E50 stakeholders include geotechnical engineers, environmental professionals, real estate industry, banking industry, lawyers, government representatives and academia.

    RELATIONSHIP WITH INDUSTRY, GOVERNMENT, AND REGULATION

    Committee E50 standards are referenced by both the U.S. EPA and many state EPA agencies. In particular, standard E 1527 is referenced by the EPA Brownfields Office in its all appropriate inquiry regulation. Committee E50 has strong participation from the EPA, U.S. Geological Survey, and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation as well as from a variety of state and local agencies. This participation ensures that standards will be developed with regulatory needs in mind.