On June 27, 2024 Environment and Protected Areas (EPA) released an update to the Alberta Tier 1 and 2 Soil and Groundwater Remediation Guidelines. The main updates are:
1—Guidelines for dioxins and furans were revised. The Tier 1 soil guidelines increased for agricultural, residential and parkland, commercial and industrial land uses. The Tier 1 groundwater guidelines decreased for all land uses.
2—The background indoor air concentration of xylenes used to calculate guidelines for the human protection of vapor inhalation exposure pathway was revised. This has resulted in lower soil and groundwater guidelines for xylenes for this pathway. This change does not change the overall Tier 1 guidelines for xylenes. It will primarily affect sites with coarse-grained soil where the domestic use aquifer exposure pathway has been excluded or recalculated. Site specific criteria derived for direct evaluation of xylenes in soil vapour may also require updates to reflect the change to the Tier 1 default background value.
3—Subsoil guidelines for the human and ecological protection of off-site migration for petroleum hydrocarbons increased. Offsite migration must be considered at commercial or industrial land adjacent to more sensitive land uses. The update does not change the overall Tier 1 subsoil guidelines for these parameters.
MEMS is a leader in the environmental consulting industry in Alberta. Our experts have a robust understanding of the implications of changes to environmental guidelines. We can evaluate the impacts of guideline changes on a site-by-site basis or portfolio level using Intellekt-EIG – our industry-leading rapid data visualization software tool. This allows us to help our clients meet their business and environmental objectives in a changing regulatory landscape.
