phase-i-esa

name	phase-i-esa
title	Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Report
description	Drafts ASTM E1527-21 environmental site assessment reports under 40 CFR Part 312. Classifies RECs, CRECs, and HRECs to establish all appropriate inquiries for CERCLA liability protection. Trigger when the user requests a Phase I ESA, environmental site assessment, recognized environmental conditions analysis, ASTM E1527 compliance, or environmental due diligence for property transactions or lending.
author	CaseMark
author_url	https://github.com/CaseMark/skills/tree/main/skills/legal/phase-i-esa
license	Apache-2.0
version	0.1.0
execution_mode	open
jurisdiction	us
practice	environmental
language	en
tags	["analysis","drafting","regulatory","transactional"]

Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Report

Drafts a Phase I ESA establishing "all appropriate inquiries" under ASTM E1527-21 and 40 CFR Part 312 for CERCLA liability protection. ASTM E1527-21 became EPA-recognized for AAI compliance on Feb 13, 2023; the prior E1527-13 lost AAI recognition on Feb 13, 2024 and is no longer compliant.

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Related skills

• due-diligence-summary — when the Phase I ESA is part of a broader transactional diligence package.
• environmental-regulation-summaries — for governing-statute identification when the site implicates multiple regulatory regimes.
• environmental-indemnity and environmental-covenant-and-easement — for risk-allocation and institutional-control instruments referenced in the report.
• brownfields-agreement — for redevelopment of contaminated sites with Phase I ESA findings.
• consent-decree-epa — when the property is subject to a federal cleanup decree.
• real-estate-transaction-summary — for whole-transaction memos that incorporate Phase I findings.

Prerequisites

Collect before drafting:

1. Property identification — legal description, address, APN, coordinates, zoning
2. Client purpose — acquisition, lending, corporate compliance, or other
3. Site reconnaissance data — date, observations, photos, access limitations
4. Historical sources — aerial photos, fire insurance maps, city directories, topo maps
5. Regulatory database results — federal/state/tribal/local at ASTM search radii
6. User questionnaires — owner/occupant questionnaires per ASTM E1527-21
7. Interview notes — current/past owners, operators, local officials
8. EP qualifications — credentials per 40 CFR § 312.10
9. Prior reports (if any) — previous Phase I/II ESAs, remediation docs

Quick Start

1. Confirm property ID, client purpose, and transaction timeline.
2. Verify all prerequisite data is available; flag missing items as data gaps.
3. Draft each report section sequentially per the structure below.
4. Classify every identified condition as REC, CREC, HREC, or de minimis.
5. State conclusions unambiguously; recommend Phase II if any RECs found.

Report Sections