Environmental contamination from a UST system may impact or may have impacted your property.  Releases from USTs may contaminate soil and groundwater. This contamination can migrate from the property where it originated and impact nearby properties. It may affect drinking water wells, create potential risks through fluid or vapor into subsurface utilities, or, in some cases, affect indoor air quality in off site buildings. In some cases, contaminant levels that reach nearby properties may exceed levels considered protective of human health. 

It is rare that contamination from a UST system is visible or detectable by smell. In most cases, you will not know whether contamination has migrated to your property because confirmation requires sampling and chemical analysis.

UST owners and operators are responsible for assessing and cleaning up contamination from their UST systems. If there has been a release, ADEQ requires owners and operators to:

• Determine the extent and degree of contamination;
• Protect property owners and tenants who may be exposed; and
• Clean up contamination to levels that are protective of human health and the environment.

In some cases, the State UST Program may take the lead in assessing and cleaning up contamination. 

If an owner or operator has reason to believe that contamination from their facility has migrated onto your property, State law requires them to request access to conduct an environmental assessment. The purpose of this investigation is to determine whether contamination is or is likely to impact a receptor (such as an onsite well) or whether it is or is likely to present a risk to people who live or work at the location. The type and extent of investigation and sampling required depends on the specific release conditions and subsurface conditions.

In situations where contamination is likely to spread or increase in severity if access to off site property is not obtained, the UST owner or operator must contact the person with authority to grant access by making at least two written requests for access at reasonable times under reasonable conditions and offer reasonable compensation. This process is described in Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.) § 49-1022 | View A.R.S. >

The owner or operator should contact you in writing to request access. They must provide a description of the work and the expected duration. In many cases, an environmental consultant may take the lead in contacting you for access. You may request that they work only at certain times or in certain locations on your property.

ADEQ strongly recommends that you verify the identification of anyone requesting access to your property for environmental work.

The UST owner or operator will use a professional environmental consultant to collect samples at no cost to you.

If ADEQ obtains access, a consultant representing ADEQ will collect the environmental samples at no cost to you.

Whether the UST owner or operator or ADEQ conducts the investigation, your property will be returned to substantially the same condition as before access.

You may agree to provide access or you may decline. 

ADEQ encourages cooperation with environmental investigations. Access helps ensure that you and your property are protected from contamination caused by a UST system release and allows responsible parties to complete required cleanup.

Sampling results and investigation reports are public records. Typically, UST owners or operators who obtain access will provide you with copies of sampling results related to your property. 

If ADEQ conducts the investigation, the department will provide you with a copy of soil or groundwater sampling results. 

It is common for potential buyers to review off site properties to evaluate the potential presence of contamination. Not knowing may affect property value and increase risk. 

ADEQ recommends that property owners take advantage of finding out whether their property has been impacted so that responsible UST owners and operators can be held accountable for clean up.

The UST owner or operator may be excused from its obligation to address UST contamination on a neighboring property if access is denied.

Under Arizona law,¹ ADEQ may undertake corrective action in response to a release from a UST system that migrates onto or under another person's property, or that is likely to do so. 

If access is not granted, the owner or operator may request ADEQ’s assistance to investigate off site conditions. 

If ADEQ decides to pursue access, you will be contacted to provide access. Unlike the UST owner or operator, ADEQ is not required to offer compensation but must return your property back to substantially the same condition.

You are considered to have refused access if you do not respond to the owner or operator, or ADEQ within 60 days.

If ADEQ determines access is necessary, you will receive a notice describing the work to be performed. You have the right to appeal this action within 30 days of receiving the notice or within 30 days after ADEQ completes the work if your property is not returned back to substantially the same condition.

¹Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.) § 49-1022 | View A.R.S. >