6 Ways an Environmental Assessment Can Save You Money
An environmental assessment of a property or a building is the first step toward mitigating or correcting serious threats to the environment and human health. It’s a process that can have significant benefits for public health and safety and may also be required by lenders and environmental agencies.
But a properly conducted environmental assessment is often a good business decision as well.
“An environmental assessment can pay for itself in the prevention of safety threats, delays and regulatory problems down the line,” said Omega President and Project Director Steve Rosas. “Environmental issues have a way of becoming bigger and more expensive problems over time.”
Here are six ways an environmental assessment can protect the health of your investment or business.
- Avoid Costly Compliance Hurdles and Fines: Finding yourself on the wrong side of a regulatory agency can be enormously expensive. At a minimum you are likely to find your project or business interrupted, if not stalled. Fines and penalties come with the territory if you fail to notify the proper regulatory authorities like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) about the removal of hazardous materials, or if you remove materials without proper compliance with worker safety requirements. Delays and uncertainty can also wreak collateral damage on your credibility with clients, partners or other investors. An assessment can provide you with a clear path to compliance, mitigation or remediation – and provide you with the assurance that you’re on the right track.
- Prevent Property Damage: An assessment puts you in position to manage small problems before they grow into big problems. Not moving quickly enough to get help with suspected issues like water intrusion or mold impacted building materials can result in damage that spreads. Untreated mold is not only a health hazard – it can weaken and destroy walls and other building structures. It can also impact the health and productivity of employees and other building occupants. Water intrusion problems rarely stay in one place for long. A mold and moisture assessment puts you in a position of control. You’ll know exactly what steps you need to take to get issues resolved safely and cost-effectively.
- Protect Yourself Against Litigation: Proactive assessment for hazards like asbestos, PCBs, lead and mold can head off expensive and time-consuming lawsuits. A clear understanding of what hazardous materials exist on a property prior to any renovation activity will prevent exposure risks to building occupants, as well as prevent improper disposal of wastes.
- Protect Your Investment: One of the best ways to protect yourself against investment loss is to know exactly what you’re getting – including what you can’t see. A Phase 1 Environmental Assessment as a form of pre-purchase due diligence can keep you from making a big mistake. Hazardous material contamination can be expensive to clean up.
- Get in Front of Public Health Risks: If you suspect that your processes or properties could be impacting ground water, air quality or otherwise exposing the public to harm, a professional assessment can head off big risks, including health, safety and environmental compliance risks. Prevention is a cost-effective strategy.
- Minimize Workers’ Compensation Costs: An industrial hygiene assessment can identify workplace health and safety risks posed by physical, chemical or biological sources, including indoor air quality, exposure to hazardous materials or exposure over safe limits for temperature, lighting or noise. An assessment also includes recommendations for mitigation with engineering or administrative controls or the use of personal protective equipment. A solid plan can keep employees safe and insurance costs under control.
Expertise that Lets You Move Forward with Confidence
At Omega Environmental, we have decades of experience providing careful, thorough and cost-effective assessments for public and private property owners, insurance companies, banks, general contractors and engineers. We provide reliable full-service environmental management and hazardous materials consulting that leaves our clients secure in the knowledge that their project will be handled safely, professionally and effectively.
Contact us to learn more about how our assessments can save you time, money and compliance worries.
