The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) Bureau of Waste Site Cleanup is holding an online informational meeting about upcoming Technical Assistance Grants (TAGs) funding. TAGs are available to community and municipal groups to enhance public participation in assessment and cleanup activities at oil or hazardous material disposal sites. TAGs may be used to obtain expert advice and technical assistance and to promote community education for qualifying projects.  The informational meeting will include a presentation on the purpose of the TAG program, grant eligibility requirements, and the grant application process and timelines.

The online informational meeting will take place on Wednesday, April 16, 2025 at 4:00 PM via Zoom. You may access the meeting via MassDEP’s TAG webpage at this link:  https://www.mass.gov/info-details/technical-assistance-grants-waste-site-cleanup

On March 19, 2025, Annual Certification letters were sent by MassDEP’s Bureau of Waste Site Cleanup to property owners where an Active Exposure Pathway Mitigation Measure (AEPMM) is required to maintain a Permanent Solution with Conditions under the Massachusetts Contingency Plan (MCP). The MCP requires that the current property owner submit an annual certification concerning the operation and maintenance of the AEPMM upon receipt of a form sent by MassDEP (310 CMR 40.1025(8)).

In addition to the annual certification, MassDEP is requesting that the property owner conduct a shutdown and restart test (310 CMR 40.1025(9)) to demonstrate the remote telemetry for the system is operating correctly. In total, seventy-four (74) letters were sent to property owners. Letters were also emailed when MassDEP had an email on file for the property owner. The deadline for returning the Annual Certification form is May 5, 2025. Annual Certification letters sent by MassDEP are publicly available on the Energy & Environmental Affairs Data Portal.  As MassDEP receives completed forms from property owners those letters will be added to the Data Portal as well. 

The LSPA appreciates that over 250 members took our Member Survey in November and December 2024. While we do not know if the survey findings are representative of LSPA members as a whole, we want to share the results.

As a reminder, the survey covered several topics:

The following LSPA practice tip was introduced at the March 2025 Membership Meeting, which was held via Zoom on March 20, 2025.

Practice Tip of the Month
Spring is a good time to document the condition of monitoring wells, especially after a busy snowplow season. Well covers that are damaged over the winter may no longer meet the requirements of 310 CMR 40.0028, which specifies:

The LSP Association Scholarship Fund is now accepting applications for educational scholarships for the 2025-2026 academic year. Deadline for submission is Friday, May 9, 2025.

The scholarship program supports continued education within environmental fields of study at colleges and universities throughout New England.

To LSPA Members:

The Nominating Committee of the LSP Association (LSPA) is in the process of developing a slate of candidates for the two available positions on the LSPA's Board of Directors. These are three-year positions beginning on July 1, 2025. The Board is comprised of nine members, two of whom may be Associate (non-LSP) members. Current Board members are listed on the LSPA website here. 

The Massachusetts Underground Storage Tank Program (UST Program) was established to administer the Massachusetts Underground Storage Tank Petroleum Product Cleanup Fund (21J Fund). The Fund was created in 1991 pursuant to M.G.L. Chapter 21J.

The 21J Fund was approved in 1992 by the EPA as a state financial assurance mechanism for UST owners. To oversee the Fund, a 9-member Administrative Review Board (21J Board) was established. The Fund is administered by the MA Department of Revenue. The 21J Board holds a 2-hour monthly virtual meeting as well as monthly 2 to 4-hour appeal hearings as needed for reimbursement requests. Periodically, there is work to be done by ad hoc subcommittees and work groups.  

The Board of Registration of Hazardous Waste Site Cleanup Professionals (the LSP Board) oversees hazardous waste site cleanup professionals, also known as LSPs. The LSP Board is comprised of eleven members as set forth in M.G.L. c.21A, Section 19A.

Currently, the LSP Board has one vacant seat which according to statute, must be filled by persons who are “. . . members of statewide organizations that promote the protection of the environment at the time of appointments and who are knowledgeable with respect to issues involving responding to releases of oil and hazardous materials.” The appointee must have waste site cleanup experience i.e., assessment, containment, and removal as well knowledge of M.G.L. c. 21E. The appointment is subject to confirmation by the Governor.

The MCP-mandated March 1, 2025 deadline is fast approaching.

Pursuant to 310 CMR 40.0560(7)(i)(4.)(b), a Periodic Review of the Temporary Solution and Tier Classification Extension shall be submitted within one year of March 1, 2024 for disposal sites where Active O&M is not occurring and the following apply: (i) a Temporary Solution Statement for a disposal site was submitted to the Department prior to March 1, 2024; (ii) the Tier Classification had expired prior to March 1, 2024, and (iii) Status Reports and, as applicable, the Periodic Review of the Temporary Solution had not been submitted at the frequency specified pursuant to 310 CMR 40.0898 and 310 CMR 40.1050(4) prior to March 1, 2024.

The following LSPA practice tip was introduced at the February 2025 Membership Meeting, which was held via Zoom on February 12, 2025.

Practice Tip of the Month
When an MCP submittal form is required, you should download the form directly from the MassDEP website. That way you will have the most current version of the form rather than a possibly outdated version saved to your desktop or laptop.

The LSPA recently received the below request for volunteers to sit on an advisory committee convened by the Massachusetts State Geologist. If you are interested in being considered for this committee, please respond to [email protected] by no later than January 29, 2025.  

Massachusetts recently appointed Brian Yellen as the State Geologist and director of the State Geological Survey, taking over from Steve Mabee who served the state for 22 years. In order to best serve various stakeholder communities around the state, Brian is setting up an advisory committee made up of state government officials, academics, and engineering practitioners. 

2024 flew by while the LSPA advocated for the waste site cleanup practice and supported practitioners throughout the Commonwealth. We are always eager to review and assess our annual accomplishments and this year is no different. We can’t say “thank you” enough to LSPA members, committees, workgroup leaders, and committee chairs who make this association successful. We also applaud our annual and event sponsors who underwrite our work; we appreciate your confidence in our ability to carry out our mission. Below are some 2024 highlights.  

The following LSPA compliance tip was introduced at the December 2024 Membership Meeting, which was held via Zoom on December 18, 2024.

Compliance Tip of the Month
While the MCP requires an assessment of “reasonably foreseeable future changes in site conditions” related to climate change, it does not indicate a specific assessment timeframe. 

BWSC Advisory Committee Meeting Highlights

MassDEP’s Bureau of Waste Site Cleanup (BWSC) Advisory Committee meeting was held on November 21, 2024. The meeting agenda, meeting slides, and a YouTube meeting video are all available here. The LSPA’s key takeaways are below.

• AUL Guidance is “nearing the finish line” and expected to be final by early 2025. MassDEP is continuing to review and incorporate comments received, and ensuring consistency with other documents – e.g., Risk Characterization guidance. Contact Margaret Shaw at [email protected] with questions.
• Soils Reuse Update: The COMM-24 Soils Policy is currently under review by MassDEP senior staff. This policy would allow reuse of contaminated soils at other 21E sites at levels greater than currently allowed by COMM-15. There will be a public review of the draft policy before it is finalized. At this time, major acceptance requirements include but are not limited to: must result in achievement of a Permanent Solution, must include a public involvement process, and at least 250,000 cubic yards of soil must be moved.  
• The PFAS Q&A is under review by senior staff and expected to be released in early 2025.  For PFAS questions, contact John Ziegler, LSP, at [email protected].
• The Western Regional Office has a new Deputy Regional Director (DRD): Tamara Cardona-Marek, Ph.D. She replaces Catherine Skiba who was the most recent Acting DRD.

The 2024 MCP Amendments Q&A document has been updated as of November 1, 2024 to include questions and answers related to the 2024 MCP Subpart I (310 CMR 40.0900) provisions. Topics include: 

• Coal Tar Waste Deposits
• Exposure Point Concentrations
• Systematic Sampling
• Incremental Sampling
• Judgmental Sampling
• Caps and Engineered Barriers

This, and other documents related to the 2024 MCP Amendments, can be accessed at the MCP Amendments web page under Related Information at www.mass.gov/lists/mcp-amendments#related-information- 

The following LSPA compliance tip was introduced at the November 2024 Membership Meeting, which was held via Zoom on November 19, 2024.

Compliance Tip of the Month

At their October 8, 2024, meeting, the LSP Board discussed the steps they are taking to prepare for administrative approval to release their proposed 309 CMR 1.00 -9.00, Regulations of the Board of Registration of Hazardous Waste Site Cleanup Professionals. There is not currently a specific timeframe for public review and comment on the proposed regulations, but the LSP Board shared preliminary documents including:

• Background and Technical Support Document, Draft Amendments, 309 CMR 1.00-9.00
• Regulatory Impact Assessment
• Outreach Plan

Provided below is a brief summary of proposed changes most pertinent to LSPs.

On September 10, 2024, the LSPA sent our comments to MassDEP’s Bureau of Waste Site Cleanup (BWSC) as part of its public comment period on Risk Characterization Guidance, Chapters 6-10, Public Review Draft.

The LSPA adhered to our typical process for collecting and submitting comments on draft documents:

After nearly 15 years as the LSPA’s Executive Director, Wendy Rundle will be retiring from the position in Spring 2025. Starting this month, the LSPA will begin a formal search for a new Executive Director.

A search committee has been formed and is comprised of:

The LSPA’s Contribution to the LSP Practice Awards recognize outstanding individuals and organizations, and their contributions in the field of hazardous waste site cleanup in Massachusetts. Award recipients are nominated each year by their peers and recipients are selected by the LSPA Board from a variety of categories. Congratulations to this year’s award recipients, who were recognized last night at the September 2024 Membership Meeting:

• Marie Rudiman, EnviroRisk Solutions, was presented with the LSPA Member Award in recognition of her leadership, commitment, and contributions to the LSPA organization and membership over the previous year.

• Elizabeth Callahan, recently retired from MassDEP, received the Lifetime Achievement Award. This award is presented to an individual in recognition of distinguished and continued contributions over 25 years or more to the advancement of science, standards, or professionalism in the field of site assessment and remediation under MGL c. 21E.