Environmental Geology Services

EGS provides complete cost recovery / claims support services to our clients who have projects involving investigation and or remediation of fuel Underground Storage Tanks (USTs). For these clients we use billing rates that are in general conformance with the State UST Cost Guidelines and EGS has had excellent success in obtaining 100% cost recovery for all reimbursable charges for our UST service area clients. The following is background information on the UST Fund and an outline of EGS’s services in this area.

The California State UST Cleanup Fund

The State of California offers reimbursement for corrective action costs related to cleanup of underground storage tank (UST) sites through the State UST Cleanup Fund (Fund), which was created pursuant to Chapter 6.75 of the California State Health & Safety Code. The Fund helps eligible owners and operators of petroleum UST’s to:

Meet federal and state requirements in demonstrating financial responsibility by providing coverage to pay for the costs of cleanup and third party liability caused by an unauthorized release of petroleum from a UST; and
Obtain reimbursement for the costs of cleaning up unauthorized releases of petroleum from UST’s; and
Obtain reimbursement for damages awarded to third parties who are injured by unauthorized releases of petroleum from UST’s.

The owner or operator of a UST is considered the Responsible Party (RP), and must complete documentation and submit all pertinent information in association with costs related to a UST investigation and/or corrective action cleanup effort.

Environmental Geology Services (EGS) provides full assistance in completing and submitting the necessary documentation to request reimbursement from the Fund. The RP assigns EGS as their authorized designated representative. This assistance, referred to as Regulatory Technical Assistance (RTA), is a reimbursable expense for UST work.

The following describes the Fund claims process and the services EGS uses to provide RTA to Clients who may qualify for Fund reimbursement:

Application for Authorized Designated Representative - EGS prepares and submits this form to the Client so they can assign EGS as their Authorized Designated Representative (ADR). EGS then submits the Authorized Designated Representative form to the Fund. This give EGS the authorization to administer all paperwork to file claims and obtain reimbursements on behalf of the Client.
Communication with California State Fund personnel - The Fund assigns personnel for different regions of the State. EGS has consulted with various Fund personnel and has developed working relationships with numerous Fund staff during previous and on-going RTA work for our Clients.
State UST Cleanup Fund Claim Application - The initial step for State reimbursement is the submittal of this Application which EGS completes as part of our RTA services. It is through this Application that the Client is pre-qualified and a Claim Number is assigned. The Application provides the Fund with Responsible Party information, proof that the RP is the owner and/or operator of the petroleum UST, a brief Site Background, information for determination of Priority Class (ie residential, business, etc.), indicates the regulatory agency overseeing the UST cleanup, and defines the RP as financially responsible for cleanup costs.
Claim Number Assignment - Upon review and approval of the Claim Application, the Fund will assign a Claim number to the site.
Reimbursement Processing Services- After receipt of the Fund Claim number, EGS can begin to submit Reimbursement Requests to the State for our Clients. The requests must be in the amount of at least $10,000.00 to be considered for reimbursement, and must include all documentation for which the reimbursement is being made. EGS compiles documents such as invoices, copies of cancelled payment checks, regulatory correspondence and directives, technical Work Plans and Reports, cost breakdown spreadsheets, and State Fund documentation, and submits these with the Fund spreadsheet for our Clients.
Account Status Reports - The State Fund requires a submittal of either a Reimbursement Request or status letter every six months to keep the Claim active. EGS tracks the status of our Clients projects, submits timely reports and maintains account status.

EGS performs each of the activities listed above under the scope of work for Regulatory Technical Assistance or RTA. The State Fund considers RTA work as a reimbursable expense. And EGS has an excellent track record in making sure the Fund returns these costs to our Clients.