BL Companies was retained by a financial institution to provide environmental due diligence services at four properties in an industrial section of Bronx, NY.  The four properties had been most recently utilized for storage tank, boiler manufacturing and repairs. It had been previously used for other heavy industrial purposes. 

Due diligence services included a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment which identified several areas of environmental concern, followed by a Phase II Site Investigation (Phase II).  The Phase II included a surface geophysical investigation to delineate current/former underground storage tanks (USTs) and tank graves, followed by the installation of soil borings and ground water monitoring wells in and around the areas of concern, and the collection of several soil and water samples for laboratory analysis.  In addition, the monitoring well elevations were surveyed in order to calculate a ground water flow direction.  Many of the borings and monitoring wells were installed inside the buildings in order to adequately address certain areas of concern (e.g., closed-in-place USTs, floor drains, oil/water separators, etc.)  Challenges overcome in order to complete the soil and ground water investigation included physical limitations, such as limited maneuverability inside the structures, ongoing manufacturing activities, and shallow drilling equipment refusal from geology and other non-native buried materials. 

BL Companies performed these services under an aggressive timetable to determine if soil or ground water beneath the property had been adversely impacted by the current and historical land uses, and to identify any other potential environmental liabilities that would prevent the properties from being used as collateral.