A Preliminary Investigation aims at collecting and assessing all information pertaining to historical activities which has been carried out on a potentially contaminated site as well as in its near vicinity.
According to the provisions of Law no. 74/2019, an owner of a potentially contaminated site or a company running its operations on a potentially contaminated site must notify the relevant local environmental protection agency (EPA). The local EPA decides and notifies the owner/company whether a Preliminary Investigation is necessary.
An owner of a potentially contaminated site or a company running its operations on a potentially contaminated site must carry out a Preliminary Investigation in other cases as well, even if the local EPA has not requested it. These specific cases are as follows:
- when an activity generating an impact upon the environment ceases;
- when the activity or the use of a potentially contaminated site is modified;
- when the legal status of sites where an activity generating an impact upon the environment has been carried out or it is currently carried out is modified;
- when accidents leading to an environmental contamination occur, after removing the contamination source and the spilled contaminants;
- when a company declares bankruptcy or dissolution;
- other cases stipulated by law.
The AUDITECO experts have developed Preliminary Investigation Reports for private companies activating in various fields, by taking into account both legal provisions and financial efficiency.