An Environmental Site Assessment (ESA) is a series of investigations conducted by an environmental company to determine the extent of environmental contamination, if any, to soil, groundwater and sediment on a property and, if present, the remediation activities that must be taken to clean up the contamination to satisfy regulatory requirements.  It has become the standard tool for the protection of property managers, investors and owners from environmental and/or financial liability.  Usually, environmental site assessments are initiated when a transfer of property ownership or mortgage activity occurs, or to obtain approval from a municipality for a land use change or building permit, and can be requested by any party involved including banks and lending companies, property developers, lawyers, potential property purchasers, or private home owners.

The initial investigation, called a Phase I ESA, is intended to determine the potential for environmental contamination and to establish the need for further investigation(s).  The subsequent investigation, a Phase II ESA, occurs only if the Phase I ESA implies that the likelihood of contamination is sufficient enough to warrant conducting intrusive testing at strategic locations on the property to confirm, by an accredited laboratory, that contamination is indeed present.  The final phase, referred to as remediation or Phase III, occurs only if contamination above regulatory levels is confirmed and involves cleaning up the contaminated areas of the property.

Fisher Environmental conducts Environmental Site Assessments at residential, commercial, industrial and institutional properties, and its’ affiliated Drilling and Laboratory divisions provide complementary services for analysis and remediation of contaminated sites.  Fisher Environmental is capable of performing all three stages of ESA investigations, including planning and implementation of remediation, groundwater treatment, and storage tank removal.