SHWS

ASTM search distance 1.0 mile

Scope State / Tribal

A state's or tribe's own counterpart to the federal National Priorities List (NPL). The federal inquiry rule calls these tribal and state equivalent sites, groups them with its records of reported and threatened releases, and does not say what a state puts on its list. What puts a property on one is set by that state's program.

What puts a property on this record

Each state keeps its own list under its own program. Two federal rules bear on it: the National Contingency Plan rule for the NPL, which says what the federal list is and what part a state has in it, and the inquiry rule, which tells the professional to review state records.

The NPL is "the list of priority releases for long-term remedial evaluation and response" (40 CFR 300.425(b)). A release may be included if it scores high enough under the Hazard Ranking System, if a state designates it as its "highest priority", or if it meets three listed conditions that begin with a federal health advisory (40 CFR 300.425(c)). A state may make only one such designation, and tribes may not make one (40 CFR 300.425(c)(2)). A release leaves the NPL only after the state concurs in the proposed deletion (40 CFR 300.425(e)(2)). In those paragraphs the state's part in the federal list is a designation, a consultation before deletion and a concurrence (40 CFR 300.425(c)(2), (e)). The plan also has EPA consult states, as appropriate, on scoring and, where feasible, give them time to review releases it has scored for listing (40 CFR 300.515(c)). Those rules are for the NPL and do not set the content of any state's list.

Part 312 names the records without defining them: it asks the professional to review "tribal- and state-equivalent sites" (40 CFR 312.26(c)(1)(i)), and, for the subject property, "federal, tribal and state government listings of sites identified as priority cleanup sites" (40 CFR 312.26(b)(2)).

What a listing shows, and what it does not

The regulations do not make a state listing a federal finding. The federal rule names these records and gives a distance; it does not say what a state must put on its list, what ends a listing, or what a listing says about contamination at an adjoining or nearby property. Those answers are not in the regulations.

In a Phase I ESA

State and tribal Superfund equivalent lists are standard sources with an approximate minimum search distance of 1.0 mile, which the professional may reduce, explaining why in the report, and the standard's table asks for sites that are active now and sites that were active before (E1527-21, 8.1.2.1, 8.2.2, Table 2, footnote A). When the subject property or an adjoining property is listed, the pertinent agency file should be reviewed, or the professional reviews alternative sources and gives an opinion on their sufficiency, or explains why no review was warranted (E1527-21, 8.2.3).

The facts to establish from the file are what was released, which media are affected, where the release lies, what the agency required, and whether the case is closed, with or without controls. For a listing at the subject property, the report states what the file shows and gives the reasoning on the definitions of the recognized environmental condition, the controlled recognized environmental condition, the historical recognized environmental condition and the de minimis condition (E1527-21, 3.2.17, 3.2.20, 3.2.39, 3.2.73). A closure that leaves controls in place brings in the activity and use limitations the standard defines (E1527-21, 3.2.2). For a nearby listing, the search distance exists to assess the likelihood of impact from migrating substances (E1527-21, 8.1.2). The report gives the professional's judgment on the significance of each listing within it (E1527-21, 8.1.10). For a known release off the subject property, the factors the standard's nonmandatory appendix lists include where the source lies in relation to the subject property and the topography, geology and hydrogeology of the area (E1527-21, X4.1).

See Agency file review and Likely release and likely presence.

What the federal rule says

Records of NPL sites or tribal- and state-equivalent sites (one mile)

40 CFR 312.26(c)(1)(i), edition revised as of July 1, 2025

The standard gives 1.0 mile for the same record (E1527-21, 8.2.2, Table 2). The rule says the procedures of the standard may be used to comply with 312.23 through 312.31 (40 CFR 312.11).

Where the record is kept

The state environmental agency's cleanup program database. Naming and structure vary by state. The agency's online site lookup is usually the authoritative record, and the state file is the one to pull when the subject or an adjoining property is listed.

This page is general reference for environmental professionals. It does not classify any property. ASTM E1527-21 is the standard and is not reproduced here; the judgment of the environmental professional on the facts governs.

Classifying a finding

Situations in which this record type bears on the answer:

In each state

The state programs this handbook covers under this record type: