Division of Emergency Response and Technical Assessment Bureau of Police and Security "SPILL BILL" Law and Regulations On the release or threatened release of hazardous substances into the environment, the response to releases, and the liability for response and remediation CITY OF NEW YORK BILL DE BLASIO, Mayor EMILY LLOYD, Commissioner KEVIN MCBRIDE, Deputy Commissioner VASSILIOS ZOUMBOULIAS, P.E., Director, DERTA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION "Spill Bill" Laws 1 NEW YORK CITY Hazardous Substances Emergency Response Law Chapter 6 HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE EMERGENCIES SUBCHAPTER 1 SHORT TITLE, POLICY AND DEFINITIONS NOTE: Added L.L. 42/87 § 6, approved 7/14/87. Effective 60 days thereafter. L.L. 42/87 provisions. Section 1. Declaration of legislative intent and findings. The council finds that the release or threatened release of hazardous substances into the environment presents a substantial danger to the public health, welfare and the environment. The enactment by the state legislature of a plan for the management of hazardous wastes has not reduced the need for or authority of the city to respond to emergencies caused by hazardous substance releases. The council declares that the response measures taken by the city must be effective and thorough so as to prevent injury to human, plant and animal life and change to property and the environment. Therefore, the council hereby determines that the department of environmental protection should specifically be authorized to respond to emergencies caused by releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances into the environment. The council provides herein that responsible persons shall be jointly and severally liable for all lawful response and remediation costs incurred by any city agency authorized by law to respond to such emergencies, including but not limited to the departments of environmental protection, health and sanitation and the police and fire departments. It shall be the policy of the city to seek the recovery of such costs in the first instance from the persons whose actions contributed most to the release or threatened release of hazardous substances into the environmental. The council intends that this local law shall not in any way alter or limit to functions, powers and duties of the department of health, including but not limited to its authority regarding nuisance abatement and declarations of imminent peril. § 7. This law shall take effect on the sixtieth day after its enactment into law. Actions necessary to prepare for the implementation of this local law may be taken prior to its effective date. (Section added L.L. 42/87 § 6. [See Note at beginning of chapter.]) "Spill Bill" Laws 2 § 24-601 Short title. This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "New York City hazardous substances emergency response law". (Section added L.L. 42/87 § 6. [See Note at beginning of chapter.]) § 24-602 Declaration of policy. It is hereby declared to be the public policy of the city to respond to emergencies caused by releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances into the environment so as to preserve, protect and improve the public health, safety and welfare, and to prevent injury to human, plant and animal life and property. It is the policy of the city that every person is entitled to an environment free of hazardous substances that are detrimental to life, health, and enjoyment of property. It is hereby declared that the release or threat of release of hazardous substances into the environment is a menace to the health, safety and welfare of the people of the city and may cause extensive damage to the environment and to property. This chapter shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the purposes described in this section. Nothing herein shall be construed to abridge the powers of the board of health or the department of health to engage in any of their authorized activities. (Section added L.L. 42/87 §6. [See Note at beginning of chapter.]) § 24-603 Definitions. When used in this chapter: a. "disposal " means the placing of any hazardous substance into or on any land or water so that such hazardous substance or any constituent thereof may be released into the environment. b. "hazardous substance" means each listed hazardous substance or any other chemical substance which when released into the environment may present a substantial danger to the public health or welfare or the environment. c. "listed hazardous substance" means any substance listed in accordance with section 24-609. d. "person" means any individual, trust, firm, corporation, joint stock company, association partnership, consortium, joint venture, commercial entity or governmental entity. e. "release" means any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping or "Spill Bill" Laws 3 disposing into the environment, or the abandonment of a container or containers containing hazardous substance or substances. f. "response measures" include actions taken by a city agency or ordered to be taken by a city agency: 1. to prevent, minimize or mitigate the release of hazardous substances so that they migrate to, or in any other manner, cause or threaten to cause substantial danger to the public health or welfare or the environment, 2. to clean up or remove released hazardous substances from the environment, and 3. which are necessary and appropriate to protect the public health or welfare or the environment from an immediate and substantial danger caused by a release or a substantial threat of a release of a hazardous substance into the environment, including but not limited to security measures to protect the public. g. "responsible person" means 1. any owner, operator, lessee, occupant or tenant, other than a residential lessee, occupant or tenant, of property at the time there is a release, of a hazardous substance from such property into the environment or at the time of any response measures implemented in connection with any emergency involving such release or threat of release, provided that if such property is comprised of an owner occupied residential building consisting of six or fewer dwelling units used exclusively for residential purposes, an owner of such property shall be deemed to be a "responsible person" for purposes of this paragraph, only if the willful, knowing, reckless or negligent acts or omissions of such owner caused or substantially contributed to such release or threat of release, and further provided that a federal or state chartered and regulated financial institution which has received title to the property through abandonment, foreclosure, a deed in liew of foreclosure, or through a judicial or bankruptcy order shall not be deemed to be a "responsible person" for purpose of this paragraph, unless i willful, knowing reckless or negligent acts or omissions of such person caused or substantially contributed to such release or threat of release, or ii the title was received in order to secure the underlying credit extension which had been entered into for the purpose of assisting "Spill Bill" Laws 4 the responsible person in avoidance of the provisions of this chapter, or 2 any person whose act or omissions caused or substantially contributed to a release, or a substantial threat of a release, or a hazardous substance into the environment, provided that where there is a release, or a substantial threat of a release, of a hazardous substance into the environment from property used for residential purposes, a person using such property as a residence and any invitee or licensee engaged in a business involving the use or transport of any hazardous substance, shall be deemed to be a "responsible person" for purposes of this paragraph, only if the willful, knowing, reckless or negligent acts or omissions of such person or invitee caused or substantially contributed to such release or threat of release, or 3 any owner, operator, lessee, occupant or tenant of the property at the time of disposal of any hazardous substance thereon, who had caused, authorized or permitted such hazardous substance to be so disposed, where there is a release, or a substantial threat of a release, of such hazardous substance into the environment, or 4 any person who, pursuant to contractual arrangement, accepts or has accepted any hazardous substance for transport, transports such hazardous substance and there is a release, or a substantial threat of a release, of such hazardous substance into the environment, or 5 any person who by contract, agreement, or otherwise arranged for disposal or treatment or arranged with a transporter for transport for disposal or treatment of a hazardous substance owned or possessed by such person, and there is a release, or a substantial threat of a release of such hazardous substance in the environment; provided, however, that no person, who is an entity independent from an otherwise responsible person, authorized by the commissioner of environmental protection to implement response measures at the site of a release, or a threat of a release, of a hazardous substance into the environment, shall be deemed to be a "responsible person" solely on the basis of any authorized response measures attempted or implemented by such person at such site, unless such person's willful, knowing, reckless or negligent acts or omissions caused or substantially contributed to a release, or a substantial threat of a release, of a hazardous substance into the environment. h "treatment" means any method, technique, or process, including neutralization, designed to change the physical, chemical, or biological "Spill Bill" Laws 5 character or composition of any hazardous substance so as to neutralized such substance or so as to render such substance non-hazardous, safer for transport, amenable for recovery, amenable for storage, or reduced in volume. Such term includes any activities or processing designed to change the physical form or chemical composition of a hazardous substance so as to render it nonhazardous.