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Industrial Site Recovery Act (ISRA) How to Determine if ISRA Applies to You

How to Determine if ISRA Applies to You

INTRODUCTION

This is a guide to the help an owner or operator of a business in New Jersey determine if the Industrial Site Recovery Act (ISRA) (N.J.S.A. 13:1K and N.J.A.C. 7:26B), applies to their property.

What is ISRA?

ISRA is an environmental law that requires certain types of businesses to undergo a Department approved environmental audit and cleanup if necessary. The businesses regulated by ISRA are called Industrial Establishments. Industrial Establishments need only comply with ISRA at the time of specified triggering events.

What is an industrial establishment?

To be an industrial establishment, a business must have a North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) number designated on Appendix C of the ISRA rules, N.J.A.C.7:26B. NAICS is a classification system created by the federal government to facilitate the collection of statistical information. All businesses have NAICS numbers but only those listed in Appendix C are potentially regulated by ISRA.

Useful Links regarding NAICS

Further, the business must have operated in New Jersey on or after December 31, 1983 and must involve the storage or handling of hazardous substances as defined at N.J.A.C. 7:1E, the New Jersey Spill Compensation and Control Act. Hazardous substances include petroleum products and the substances listed at Appendix A of N.J.A.C. 7:1E. To view the list of hazardous substance, see the following: http://www.nj.gov/dep/rpp/download/appenda.pdf [pdf]

In summary, to be an industrial establishment, a place of business must meet all of the following conditions:

  1. Have a NAICS number listed in Appendix C;
  2. Have operated in New Jersey on or after December 31, 1983;
  3. Use or store hazardous substances as defined at N.J.A.C. 7:1E.

For the complete definition of Industrial Establishment, see N.J.A.C.7:26B-1.4.

What events trigger an ISRA filing?

Common transactions which trigger the requirement to comply with ISRA include the sale of property, sale of business or the cessation of operations. For a more inclusive list of triggering events please refer to the ISRA regulations at N.J.A.C. 7:26B-3.2 http://www.state.nj.us/dep/srp/regs/isra/isra_03.pdf [pdf]

If I am subject to ISRA, How do I get forms or applications?

If you determine you are subject to ISRA and are required to comply with ISRA a General Information Notice must be submitted to the Department within 5 days after a “triggering event”. ISRA applications and forms, including the General Information Notice, are available from the NJDEP Site Remediation Program Web Page. The Web Page can be accessed at: http://www.nj.gov/dep/srp. Most of the applications and forms are available from the Internet in three different formats: PDF, Word 97 and zipped applications.

If you are not able to access the above referenced Web Page you may call the Office of Community Relations at (609) 984-3081 to acquire the forms and applications.