Georgia Hazardous Site Response Act (HSRA) release notifications

A Hazardous Site Response Act (HSRA) release notification is the report a Georgia property owner files with the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) when a regulated substance is found in soil or groundwater above the rule's thresholds. EPD's Response and Remediation Program evaluates each one and answers with a Non-HSI letter or an HSI Listing Letter.

In a Phase I ESA

ASTM E1527-21 does not name release notifications among its standard record sources. A notification is what EPD evaluates when it decides whether to place a release on the Hazardous Site Inventory, so a release that was reported and not listed is recorded here and would not appear on the inventory. The duty to notify falls on the property owner, so ask whether earlier sampling results were reported.

• Who notifies. EPD's answer is any owner of real property where the release was discovered.
• When. Within 30 days of the discovery of the release.
• What triggers it in groundwater. A regulated substance detected above the concentrations in Appendix III, Table 1 of the Rules for Hazardous Site Response. For a regulated substance not in that table, any detection above the naturally occurring background concentration.
• What triggers it in soil. A regulated substance detected above the notification concentration in Appendix I of the rules.
• Other releases. EPD also requires notification for discarded or abandoned regulated substances in barrels, drums, tanks or other vessels, in process units, or in waste management units that are not under a permit or otherwise already regulated under the Georgia Hazardous Waste Management Act.
• What is excluded. EPD's examples are releases cleaned up within 30 days of discovery, releases of petroleum-based fuel, lubricant or hydraulic fluid, and releases regulated under the Georgia Underground Storage Tank Act. It refers to the rule's exclusions for the complete list.

The rule is Rule 391-3-19-.04, Release Notification.

What happens to a notification

EPD decides whether a release above a reportable quantity has occurred by using its reportable quantities screening method. The method assigns numbers to the toxicity, quantity and physical state of the substance, how close the property is to nearby residents and drinking water wells, the degree to which the release is contained, the accessibility of the property, whether nearby residents have been exposed, and the presence of sensitive environments on the site. It combines them into a single score for soil or groundwater. If the score is above the established threshold for either soil or groundwater, the property is recommended for placement on the inventory. EPD may also list a property that otherwise poses a threat to human health or the environment.

Three points follow for anyone reading a Non-HSI letter.

• The score reflects the property as it was. EPD says it uses current information. Its example is a property with no fence at the time of the inspection, which is scored as having unlimited access.
• A change can reopen the question. EPD says a property that went through notification and was not listed should notify again when site changes occur that may affect the scoring. Check whether the use, access or surroundings have changed since the letter.
• The well survey matters. EPD lists an incomplete drinking water well survey as a common mistake. It says the nearest drinking water well is critical to accurate scoring, and that a distance of more than three miles is often assumed without a thorough search.

EPD also warns against treating the notification concentrations as soil cleanup standards. The cleanup numbers are the Risk Reduction Standards.

What the record shows

The notification form asks for attachments. EPD names a site summary, a site map showing source and sample areas, a U.S. Geological Survey topographic map, and copies of the laboratory sheets behind the soil and groundwater tables. Its guidance gives a Phase 2 report as an example of supporting documentation, so ask whether the file holds the sampling report that led to the notification.

Where to look a site up

The pages read do not link an online list of notifications or of Non-HSI letters. EPD says historical release notifications, and its listing or non-listing decision on each, are available for public review at its office at 2 Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr., Suite 1058, East Tower, Atlanta, and that all release notifications are now available in PDF format. The Response and Remediation Program is at 404.657.8600.

Getting the file

File reviews at the downtown office are by appointment, requested by email at the address on EPD's Land Branch Open Records Requests page. Requests under the Georgia Open Records Act go through EPD's Open Records Request Portal.

Sources

Georgia Environmental Protection Division pages, read October 7, 2026:

• Hazardous Site Response Release Notifications, last modified August 14, 2026.
• HSRA Notification 391-3-19-.04 Frequently Asked Questions, no modified date in the saved page.
• Hazardous Site Response Act Guidance, last modified September 19, 2019.
• Comparison of Existing Contamination to Risk Reduction Standards 391-3-19-.07, last modified September 16, 2026.
• Land Branch Open Records Requests, last modified July 29, 2026.