ENVIRONMENTAL AUDIT/REVIEW PROGRAM

Our Environmental Practice Group believes that businesses and governmental entities need assistance in determining if an environmental audit is necessary and appropriate and providing help in structuring an audit and handling the results. An environmental audit is often conducted by businesses and other entities affected by environmental regulations to evaluate their operations and environmental management systems looking at applicable regulations and the company’s compliance status. While voluntary, an environmental audit has ramifications in both state and federal law regarding how the audit is conducted and the effect of an audit on liability for discovered problems.

The US EPA has an audit policy that can limit liability for disclosure of violations discovered as part of a voluntary audit and defines what an acceptable method of self auditing is. Many state laws have also been enacted which place special significance on the performance of environmental audits. US EPA defines an environmental audit as a “systematic, documented, periodic and objective review by a regulated entity of facility operations and practices related to meeting environmental requirements.” Generally, an audit will be performed periodically with a comprehensive look at Air and Water Permitting, Waste Generation, Treatment, Disposal and Transportation and Hazardous and Solid Waste Permitting.

Our Environmental Practice Group can guide a business or other entity through the task of structuring an environmental audit with the protection of applicable privileges and immunities, choosing the appropriate audit methods, and analyzing and dealing with audit results. An audit assistance program can help companies minimize the cost and risks associated with conducting a regulated business operation.

Fee arrangements are subject to discussion. Normally, we recommend a phased approach where we would charge a fixed fee to review your environmentally regulated operations, including existing permits and if applicable, current audit system and reports. In this phase we would also meet with your environmental health and safety manager and executives to gain insight into the company’s operations and risk management practices and goals. After the visit, we would provide a report regarding the existing auditing procedure and results or suggestions for structuring an ongoing audit system. At that point, we could discuss fees for subsequent environmental assistance that might assist you in addressing discovered violations or areas of concern or by putting together a procedure for an effective audit program that minimizes your risk of liability and complies with the relevant regulations.

For further information, please contact: Sarah Lynn