Arkansas
Environmental Professional Certification
The Division of Environmental Quality's (DEQ's) Environmental Professional Certification page sets out the qualifications for anyone who performs a Phase I environmental site assessment to satisfy all appropriate inquiries under CERCLA. DEQ says that from 2005 until August 2007 it certified three kinds of environmental contractors: those who performed Phase I assessments, those who coordinated and oversaw comprehensive site assessments (CSA), and those who carried out cleanups. After the federal standard for environmental professionals was set in November 2005, the General Assembly repealed that program's law, Act 2141, and passed Act 1018 of 2007, which takes in the federal standards of 40 CFR 312.10 and ASTM E1527-05. The page gives Act 2141's year as 2007 in one place and 2005 in two others.
In a Phase I ESA
Four Arkansas details matter to a consultant working in the state.
- The qualification is federal and self-certified. DEQ says that since November 1, 2006, anyone performing a Phase I to satisfy the all appropriate inquiries requirement of CERCLA must meet the definition of an environmental professional at 40 CFR 312.10, and that no approval or certification by DEQ or any other agency is needed to claim that status. It says the separate state qualifications under Act 2141 of 2005 stopped applying as of July 31, 2007.
- The page still names the 2005 edition. It refers to ASTM E1527-05 and does not mention ASTM E1527-21. Read its statements about the standard as written for that edition.
- DEQ's list is not complete. Act 1018 requires DEQ to make a list of qualified environmental professionals available for the public to consult. DEQ says the list is not comprehensive: it holds those who chose certification under the earlier program and those who have asked to be added since August 2007. So do not read a missing name as a lack of qualification.
- Certified professionals keep up training. The page says certified professionals under Regulation 32 must earn at least 15 professional development hours a year, and may carry up to 15 extra hours into the next year. DEQ says it reads relevant experience the same way EPA does under the federal rule, and that neither the AAI rule nor Regulation 32 bars the use of an associate, apprentice, assistant or subcontractor, provided a fully and appropriately certified person supervises them and keeps responsible charge of their work.
The page also says the Arkansas Voluntary Cleanup Act requires a comprehensive site assessment that goes beyond a typical Phase II; see the Brownfield Program page. DEQ's SEEK Help page lists Phase I Consultants among the Office of Land Resources programs now in SEEK.
The rule is 8 CAR ยง 84-101, Rule 32, Environmental Professional Certification.
Where to look a name up
- DEQ's Environmental Professional Certification page links the list as a PDF it labels qualified environmental professionals, which this handbook did not open.
- DEQ's Office of Land Resources lists Environmental Professional Certification at 501-682-0867.
Sources
Arkansas Division of Environmental Quality pages, read October 13, 2026, no modified date shown: