Section 12-8-97 - Hazardous site inventory(a) Beginning on July 1, 1994, the division shall compile and update as necessary an inventory of all known or suspected sites where hazardous wastes, hazardous constituents, or hazardous substances have been disposed of or released in quantities deemed reportable by rules or regulations of the board. At least annually, beginning July 1, 1994, the division shall send a copy of the inventory with the sites listed by county to the clerk of each superior court of the state, who shall place and maintain the most current copy of the inventory in the room or rooms in which the deed records of the county are kept. This inventory shall be called the hazardous site inventory. The inventory shall include: (1) The name of the property or another description identifying the site;(2) The location of the site;(3) The name of the owner of the site at the time of the site's inclusion in the inventory;(4) A general description of the type and quantity of hazardous wastes, hazardous constituents, or hazardous substances known or suspected to be at the site;(5) A general description of possible or known threats to human health or the environment posed by the site;(6) The status of any cleanup activities conducted by any person;(7) A relative priority for cleanup;(8) If a site is determined, in accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the board, to require corrective action, a designation that corrective action is needed and a summary of needed actions;(9) If a site is considered not capable of posing or is no longer posing an environmental or human health hazard, a designation that no further action is required; and(10) The status of any actions contesting a determination that corrective action is needed. The division shall also publish in print or electronically annually a report of the fees collected and the funds appropriated to the hazardous waste trust fund and an accounting of all disbursements from such trust fund.
(b) After July 1, 1993, the property owner of any site listed on the inventory which is designated as having a known release and which is designated as needing corrective action shall include the following notice in any deed, mortgage, deed to secure debt, lease, rental agreement, or other instrument given or caused to be given by the property owner which creates an interest in or grants a use of the property: "This property has been listed on the state's hazardous site inventory and has been designated as needing corrective action due to the presence of hazardous wastes, hazardous constituents, or hazardous substances regulated under state law. Contact the property owner or the Georgia Environmental Protection Division for further information concerning this property. This notice is provided in compliance with the Georgia Hazardous Site Response Act."
(c) After July 1, 1993, each property owner who owns a site listed on the inventory which is designated as having a known release and which is designated as needing corrective action shall cause to be prepared an affidavit of such fact in recordable form as set forth in subsection (c) of Code Section 44-2-20 and shall file such affidavit with the clerk of the superior court of each county in which the real property or any part thereof lies. Such affidavit shall be recorded in the clerk's deed records pursuant to Code Section 44-2-20. Such affidavit shall include a statement that the property has been listed on the state's hazardous site inventory and has been designated as needing corrective action due to the presence of hazardous wastes, hazardous constituents, or hazardous substances regulated under state law. Such affidavit shall be filed with the clerk within 45 days after receipt of notice by the property owner that the director has designated the property as needing corrective action; provided, however, that neither the affidavit required by this subsection or the notice required by subsection (b) of this Code section shall be required until any contest under subsection (f) of this Code section has been resolved adversely to the property owner.(d) After July 1, 1993, each property owner who owns real property upon which hazardous wastes, hazardous constituents, or hazardous substances have been disposed of or released in amounts exceeding reportable quantities shall, within 30 days of receipt of knowledge by the property owner of the release or disposal, notify the division in writing on such forms as may be provided by the director. This notification shall include the location, type, quantity, and date of such disposal or release, if known, and a summary of actions taken to investigate, clean up, or remediate the site. Such notification shall include a quadrangle map prepared in accordance with the National Geodetic Survey or a Georgia State Plane Coordinate System pursuant to Article 2 of Chapter 4 of Title 44 that clearly indicates the location of the disposal or release; provided, however, that any property owner that has notified the United States Environmental Protection Agency under Section 103(c) of the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as amended, may satisfy this notification requirement by submitting a copy of the 103(c) notice together with such quadrangle map.(e) The provisions of this Code section shall not be applicable to emissions regulated under Article 1 of Chapter 9 of this title, "The Georgia Air Quality Act," point source discharges regulated under Article 2 of Chapter 5 of this title, the "Georgia Water Quality Control Act," or sites regulated solely by Chapter 13 of this title, the "Georgia Underground Storage Tank Act," or substances regulated under Chapter 12 of this title, the "Georgia Asbestos Safety Act."(f) The director shall provide a property owner with written notice of any determination to designate property as needing corrective action, including a statement concerning the requirements of subsections (b) and (c) of this Code section. The requirements of subsections (b) and (c) of this Code section shall be stayed by the filing of a petition for a hearing in accordance with Code Section 12-8-73 within 30 days of the issuance of the director's written notice of the director's determination to designate property as needing corrective action.Amended by 2022 Ga. Laws 850,§ 2, eff. 7/1/2022.Amended by 2010 Ga. Laws 615,§ 10, eff. 6/3/2010.