Knowledge Center
Environmental Due Diligence Knowledge Center
Plain-language guides to environmental records, Phase I support, historical research and property due diligence, written for buyers, lenders, attorneys and environmental professionals.
In-Depth Guides
All Appropriate Inquiries and Landowner Liability
What the EPA's All Appropriate Inquiries rule requires, how it protects a buyer under CERCLA, and where a records search fits in.
Read article →How Long Is a Phase I ESA Valid?
A Phase I ESA has a one-year limit and a 180-day limit on its components. Here's how the dates work and what lenders often add.
Read article →Vapor Intrusion in Property Due Diligence
How chemical vapors from contaminated soil or groundwater can reach a building, and which nearby records point to the risk.
Read article →Dry Cleaners and Property Environmental Risk
Why a former or nearby dry cleaner is a common finding in environmental records, and what buyers and lenders should check.
Read article →Environmental Due Diligence Checklist
A step-by-step checklist for the environmental review of a commercial property purchase, from first records search to closing.
Read article →What Is a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment, and Do You Actually Need One?
A Phase I ESA is the gold standard for environmental due diligence, but it's not always the right first step. Here's what it covers, what it costs, and when a database screening is the smarter move.
Read article →Top 5 Environmental Red Flags in Commercial Real Estate
Most environmental problems don't announce themselves. These five indicators appear in public records, and knowing what to look for before you sign can protect your investment.
Read article →What RCRA Means for Property Buyers and Lenders
RCRA is one of the most important federal environmental laws, and one of the least understood by property buyers. Here's what it is, why it matters, and how to spot it in a database report.
Read article →Understanding LUST: What Underground Storage Tank Records Mean for Your Property
Leaking underground storage tanks are one of the most common environmental liabilities in commercial real estate. Here's what to look for in the records, and what happens when you find one.
Read article →Flood Zones and Property Due Diligence: What Every Buyer Should Know
FEMA flood zone designation affects insurance costs, financing eligibility, and long-term property value. Here's how to read flood data and what it means before you close.
Read article →Environmental Due Diligence for SBA Loans: What Lenders Need to Know
SBA 7(a) and 504 loans have specific environmental review requirements. Here's what lenders must document, and how a database screening fits into that process.
Read article →What Is a Brownfield Property, and Is It Worth the Risk?
Brownfields can be some of the best real estate deals in any market, if you understand what you're buying. Here's how to evaluate brownfield opportunity and risk before you commit.
Read article →Sensitive Receptors: Why Schools, Wells, and Hospitals Matter in Environmental Screening
The presence of sensitive receptors near a contaminated site changes everything, from regulatory liability to cleanup standards. Here's what they are and why they appear in environmental reports.
Read article →What Is Environmental Due Diligence?
Environmental due diligence is the process of identifying environmental evidence about a property before you commit to it. Here's what it actually involves and why timing matters.
Read article →Environmental Screening vs. Phase I ESA: What's the Difference?
Both look at a property's environmental history, but they aren't interchangeable. Here's what separates a database screening from a formal Phase I Environmental Site Assessment.
Read article →When Should You Order an Environmental Screening Report?
The right time to screen a property is earlier than most people think. Here are the points in a transaction where an environmental screening pays for itself.
Read article →How Much Does Environmental Due Diligence Cost?
Environmental due diligence spans a wide price range depending on scope. Here's what actually drives the cost, and when spending more is worth it.
Read article →What Is a Recognized Environmental Condition (REC)?
REC is one of the most important terms in environmental due diligence, and one of the most misunderstood. Here's the actual definition and what triggers it.
Read article →What Is a Controlled REC (CREC)?
A CREC means a past contamination issue was addressed, but not eliminated. Here's why that distinction still matters to a buyer or lender.
Read article →What Is a Historical REC (HREC)?
An HREC means a property once had a contamination issue that's now fully resolved, with no controls attached. Here's how that's determined and why history still matters.
Read article →Environmental Due Diligence for Commercial Real Estate
Commercial real estate deals move fast and involve multiple stakeholders reading the same environmental evidence differently. Here's how to make that evidence work for everyone at once.
Read article →Environmental Due Diligence for Property Acquisition
Environmental review works best when it's built into the acquisition timeline from the start, not added in after a deal has already taken shape. Here's how to sequence it.
Read article →Environmental Due Diligence for Lenders
Lenders read environmental records for a different reason than buyers do: collateral risk. Here's what that means for how environmental review fits into underwriting.
Read article →What Is the EPA ECHO Database?
ECHO consolidates compliance and enforcement data across multiple EPA programs into one searchable system. Here's what it actually tracks and how to read a result.
Read article →What Is the CERCLIS Database?
CERCLIS is EPA's internal system for tracking Superfund site investigations, and it's often confused with the public National Priorities List. Here's the difference.
Read article →What Is the National Priorities List (NPL)?
NPL sites are the most seriously contaminated properties in the country, and proximity to one can affect a property well beyond its boundary line. Here's what determines that.
Read article →What Is the TRI Database?
TRI tracks self-reported chemical releases from industrial facilities, which makes it a different kind of record than a cleanup database. Here's how to use it correctly.
Read article →What Are UST Records, and How Are They Different From LUST Records?
A UST record and a LUST record sound similar but mean very different things. Here's the distinction, and why mixing them up leads to the wrong conclusion.
Read article →How EPA Records Can Affect Property Risk
The same database hit can mean very different things depending on distance, direction, and status. Here's the mental model for reading regulatory records correctly.
Read article →Videos
Short videos on how a report works, what it contains, how professionals use it, and a Soil Talk series. Soil in property research
Start here
How an order works, what a report contains and what it costs.
Inside a report
Reading the records, the maps and the history, with a real sample report.
Geoscope Atlas
The interactive map behind the report.
By industry
How lenders, counsel, insurers, planners and consultants use a report.
Property research ideas
Short films on why context matters in property research.
Soil Talk
A short series on soil and what soil maps can and cannot tell you in property research.
Pictures marked "Illustrative" are stock footage or illustrations. Maps, report pages and screen recordings are real.