Site Verification and Cleanup
Table of Contents
- DEC Site Verification Program
- EPA Contaminated ANCSA Lands Assistance Program
- Tribal Partnerships and Technical Assistance
Cleanup of Contaminated ANCSA Lands
The process of contaminated site cleanup can be complicated, expensive, and lengthy. DEC is working collaboratively with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (ANTHC), and Alaska Native Village Corporation Association (ANVCA) to assist Alaska Native entities in addressing Contaminated ANCSA Lands. Together these groups are providing funding and technical assistance to tribal entities, verifying site eligibility and contamination, and conducting community outreach to affected communities. To be eligible for assessment and cleanup funding, sites need to meet three basic criteria:
- Contamination must be present. This can be in the soil and water, such as spilled fuel oil, or in some cases can include hazardous building materials such as asbestos.
- The site must be located on ANCSA-conveyed land.
- The release of the contamination must have occurred, or started occurring, prior to conveyance.
DEC Site Verification Program
The DEC Contaminated Sites Program (CS) has a dedicated team to help confirm Contaminated ANCSA Land status for both previously known and newly identified sites. Hundreds of contaminated sites need further investigation to determine if they are eligible for ANCSA cleanup funding. The DEC ANCSA program can help communities verify their sites and update the status on the EPA’s inventory. This verification assistance can take several forms based on meeting the three criteria for funding eligibility.
A DEC ANCSA specialist uses a handheld X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) device to screen for contamination.
Funding Eligibility Criteria
1. An eligible site must be on ANCSA conveyed land. Demonstrating this requires either an Interim Conveyance or Patent. DEC staff can find these from the Bureau of Land Management database and confirm the property boundaries on a map. Sometimes the exact location of a site is uncertain, for example if community members know of a drum dump out in the tundra but don’t have exact GPS coordinates. In those cases DEC can travel out to the site to collect those data.
2. The site must be contaminated. That means either chemicals released into the soil and water, or hazardous materials in a building that was conveyed, such as lead-based paint or asbestos in an old school building. If previous environmental studies have been done on a site, this confirmation probably already exists. If a site has not been tested before, DEC can either send our staff or contractors out to the site to collect samples and test for contamination.
3. The contamination has to have been released prior to ANCSA conveyance. In some cases this is straightforward, for example when there is a military base from World War 2. In other cases it can be tricky to identify, for example when there is an informal dump site which the community has continued to use. DEC can look for historical documents to demonstrate how a property was used in the past or interview community members to learn from their memories. If federal activities created a problem that continued to worsen, such as an asbestos containing building that fell down after conveyance, or a dump site which community members have continued to use, then there may be a path to eligibility and you should talk to DEC and EPA project managers about the specific situation.
Once DEC has assembled information on these three criteria, the EPA will make an eligibility determination and update the inventory of ANCSA contaminated sites known as the Common Operating Picture. Sites listed as Eligible on the Common Operating Picture can apply for funding from the EPA to conduct assessment and cleanup.
There is no formal application process required to receive these services. To get started, you can contact DEC’s ANCSA unit and one of our project specialists will get to work. Our team members are available to answer any questions about verifying a site or liability protections.
If you are concerned about a site in your community that is not eligible for ANCSA funding and it's associated with a community reuse project, either DEC or the EPA may be able to help through the Brownfields program.
If the contaminated site you are interested in is not on ANCSA-conveyed land, you can find more information on the DEC Contaminated Sites Program’s website through its database and interactive map.
View the EPA's Common Operating Picture for the most up to date inventory of ANCSA contaminated lands across Alaska.
EPA Contaminated ANCSA Lands Assistance Program
Once a site is verified, tribal entities can apply to EPA’s Contaminated ANCSA Land Assistance Program to receive funding to assess and/or remediate (cleanup) Contaminated ANCSA Lands. Eligible tribal entities include Alaska Native Corporations, tribal governments, Alaska Native non-profits, and regional consortia. Currently, funding is being awarded on a non-competitive, rolling application basis in Cooperative Agreements worth up to $3 million. Visit the EPA's website to find eligibility information and application instructions for their Contaminated ANCSA Lands Assistance Program.
Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium partners meet with stakeholders in Chefornak.
Tribal Partnerships and Technical Assistance
Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (ANTHC) conducts outreach and provides technical assistance by coordinating trainings and providing education to Alaska Native entities for funding options available for Contaminated ANCSA Lands, as well as hosting the ANCSA Contaminated Lands Partnership Group. The ANCSA Contaminated Lands Partnership Group consists of representatives from federal and state agencies, ANCSA village and regional corporations, and Tribes. The Partnership Group meets quarterly and works to address sites on the EPA's Contaminated ANCSA Lands Common Operation Picture, including the verification, assessment, and cleanup of conveyed lands. Alaska Native Village Corporation Association (ANCVA) is also providing outreach and technical assistance.
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