
Understand the standard for Phase I environmental site assessments and its role in all appropriate inquiries guiding landowner liability protections.
analyze how groundwater migration carries contaminants from a factory to nearby properties, identify environmental suspects near a project site, and recognize environmental conditions based on regulatory and historical records.
Identify regulatory records from federal, state, and local agencies, stored electronically or physically, accessible via open records request to determine regulated facilities impacting project site during phase 1 assessment.
Review regulatory database search results by inspecting the radius map, summary table, detail information, and glossary to understand facility locations, details, and term explanations.
Conduct additional file review to leverage regulatory database information, open records, and past reports, enabling assessment of contaminants, site conditions, and recognized environmental conditions for the real case study.
Use historical aerial photographs as records to detect changes in urban landscapes and property usage, supplemented by city directories and fire insurance maps to identify environmental threats to project site.
The video compares methods to obtain fire insurance maps, recommending ordering from a third-party provider for a complete, timely digital set, while noting library or museum searches can be time-consuming.
Explore city directories that document historical records of business names, addresses, and contacts. Organize and search them by year, city, street, and address numbers, arranged alphabetically, to locate entities efficiently.
Identify city directories as key historical sources for property history and potential environmental suspects, using addresses, property identities, and business names to infer past activities and risks.
Connect the dots across photos, maps, and directories to show the project site’s shift from a 1970s aluminum plant on southwest road to a 1980s–1990s office building on rose avenue.
Integrate three historical sources—aerial photographs, fire insurance maps, and city directories—to reveal the project site's historical development and usages and identify the recognized environmental condition in Phase One GSA.
Are you passionate about our environments? Do you want a career that makes a difference in protecting our Earth from the impacts of global warming and climate change? If you have thought about one of those questions, then this course is for you!
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the environmental profession is one of the fastest growing job markets with the expected growth of more than 10,000 job openings over the next decade in the U.S. alone. Within the industry, Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessment (or ESA) is the most common environmental consulting service for commercial real estate due diligence because it helps potential purchasers identify environmental risks associated with properties, assists them in making informed decisions during acquisition and development, and protect them from potential future liabilities.
In this course, you will learn fundamental principles of Phase 1 ESA made simple and fun through intuitive concepts and engaging visuals. This course is designed to help you grasp the industry standard of Phase 1 ESA with no prior knowledge or skills needed. You won't see many jargons or long paragraphs. Instead, you will learn the key takeaways in step-by-step guidance to truly understand the practical essentials of Phase 1 ESA.
The course will prepare you with the strong foundation to jumpstart your career in environmental consulting which is driven by our society's ever increasing environmental awareness as well as the passages and implementations of environmental laws and regulations. As a result, you will finish this course feeling like you have completed a mini-internship and attain the knowledge and skills to successfully conduct a Phase 1 ESA.
Upon completion of this course, you will know how to:
Acquire environmental information and data for the Phase 1 ESA.
Determine topographic gradient by reading topographic map.
Review regulatory database search results to identify regulatory suspects.
Analyze aerial images to detect historical changes in urban landscapes.
Examine fire insurance maps to discover past activities.
Search for city directories to find identities of properties.
Create a coherent historical timeline by integrating various historical sources and extract useful information to identify historical suspects.
Conduct site visit and evaluate site observations to ascertain the current condition of property.
Establish the outcomes of Phase 1 ESA with appropriate recommendations and final report.
It's best to follow this course sequentially because the knowledge of a lesson is built upon the previous one. While learning, you can ask questions for further clarifications. In addition, Google Earth will be used as a relevant learning tool in this course.
Feel free to preview some of the free guide videos before enrolling. I can't wait to meet you inside the course and see you succeed!
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DISCLAIMER: This course is designed for informational and educational purposes only. It is NOT intended to provide any professional licenses or replace direct training and consulting services from an experienced environmental professional.