Wisconsin Administrative Code › Department of Natural Resources › NR 700-799 - Environmental Protection - Investigation and Remediation of Environmental Contamination › Chapter NR 708 - Immediate And Interim Actions › Section NR 708.05 - Immediate actions

Current through June 24, 2024
(1) GENERAL. Unless otherwise directed by the
				department, responsible parties shall immediately take action to halt a
				hazardous substance discharge or environmental pollution and to minimize the
				harmful effects of the discharge or environmental pollution to the air, lands
				or waters of the state.
Note:
Section
				  292.11(2)
				  (a), Stats., and ch. NR 706 require that the
				  department be notified immediately of hazardous substance discharges.
(2)EMERGENCIES. For hazardous
				substance discharges that pose an imminent threat to public health, safety or
				welfare or the environment, responsible parties shall conduct all necessary
				emergency immediate actions. Once the emergency situation is responded to,
				responsible parties shall conduct any further response actions needed to
				restore the environment to the extent practicable, unless the department
				determines that no further response is necessary in accordance with s.
				NR
				708.09.
Note:
Responsible parties are also required by
				  s.
				  323.71(1),
				  Stats., to immediately conduct emergency action to protect public health and
				  safety and to prevent damage to property in cooperation with local police and
				  fire departments, county sheriffs, and county offices of emergency
				  government.
(3)NON-EMERGENCIES.
(a) Responsible parties shall take all
				necessary, non-emergency immediate actions to halt the discharge of a hazardous
				substance and to contain, treat or remove discharged hazardous substances,
				environmental media or both, in order to minimize the harmful effects of the
				discharge to the air, lands and waters of the state and to restore the
				environment to the extent practicable.
(b) A response to a hazardous substance
				discharge and any related contaminated media shall be considered by the
				department as a non-emergency immediate action when all of the following
				criteria are met:
1. The discharge does not
				pose an imminent threat to public health, safety, or welfare or the
				environment.
2. The response does
				not result in the excavation and disposal, treatment, or storage of more than
				100 cubic yards of contaminated soil, debris, sediment, or a combination of
				these media from a single site or facility, unless an alternative volume is
				approved by the department.
3. The
				discharge is responded to immediately after the hazardous substance discharge
				occurs or is responded to immediately after discovery.
Note:
Responsible parties are required to
				  notify the department immediately of a hazardous substance discharge, in
				  accordance with the requirements of ch. NR 706.
4. At the completion of the response action,
				no further action is required by the department under s.
				NR
				708.09.
Note:
If further action is required after a
				  non-emergency response action is taken, that action meets the definition of
				  "interim action" in s.
				  NR
				  700.03(29). The principal distinction
				  between a non-emergency immediate action and an interim action is that a site
				  investigation will generally be required in conjunction with an interim action
				  but not with a non-emergency immediate action. In addition, interim actions
				  will be closed out using the criteria in ch. NR 726, not the "no further
				  action" criteria in s.
				  NR
				  708.09.
(c) Responsible parties shall conduct
				sampling at the completion of an immediate action, in accordance with the
				requirements of ss.
				NR
				712.05 and
				716.13, when any of the following
				conditions are met:
1. The hazardous substance
				discharge or environmental pollution is in contact with groundwater.
2. The amount, identity or duration of the
				hazardous substance discharge or environmental pollution is unknown.
3. Where other site or facility conditions
				indicate that sampling is necessary to confirm the adequacy of the immediate
				action.