N.Y. Environmental Conservation Law § 56-0505: Environmental restoration projects; criteria

§ 56-0505. Environmental restoration projects; criteria.

1. The department shall determine the eligibility of an environmental

restoration project for state assistance under this title based upon the

following criteria:

(a) the benefit to the environment realized by the expeditious

remediation of the property proposed to be subject to such project;

(b) the economic benefit to the state by the expeditious remediation

of the property proposed to be subject to such project;

(c) the potential opportunity of the property proposed to be subject

to such project to be used for public recreational purposes;

(d) real property in a designated brownfield opportunity area pursuant

to section nine hundred seventy-r of the general municipal law; and

(e) the opportunity for other funding sources to be available for the

remediation of such property, including, but not limited to, enforcement

actions against responsible parties (other than the municipality to

which state assistance was provided under this title; or a successor in

title, lender, or lessee who was not otherwise a responsible party prior

to such municipality taking title to the property), state assistance

payments pursuant to title thirteen of article twenty-seven of this

chapter, and the existence of private parties willing to remediate such

property using private funding sources. Highest priority shall be

granted to projects for which other such funding sources are not

available.

2. The department shall not enter into a contract with a municipality

pursuant to section 56-0503 of this title for an environmental

restoration project for any site listed in the registry of inactive

hazardous waste sites under section 27-1305 of this chapter and given a

classification as described in subparagraph one or two of paragraph b of

subdivision two of such section 27-1305.

3. The remediation objective of an environmental restoration

remediation project shall meet the same standard for protection of

public health and the environment that applies to remedial actions

undertaken pursuant to section 27-1313 of this chapter.

4. After completion of such project, the municipality may use the

property for public purposes or may dispose of it. If the municipality

shall dispose of such property by sale to a responsible party, such

party shall pay to such municipality, in addition to such other

consideration, an amount of money constituting the amount of state

assistance provided under this title plus accrued interest and

transaction costs and the municipality shall deposit that money into the

environmental restoration project account of the hazardous waste

remedial fund established under section ninety-seven-b of the state

finance law.

5. In the event that an environmental restoration project's

remediation objective shall not have been attained to the department's

satisfaction at the time of the municipality's disposition of such

property, such municipality shall be liable to ensure that such

objective is attained within the time called for in the state assistance

contract.