Vermont
Brownfields Reuse and Environmental Liability Limitation Program (BRELLA)
The Brownfields Reuse and Environmental Liability Limitation Program (BRELLA) of the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is established under the Brownfields Reuse and Environmental Liability Limitation Act, 10 V.S.A. sections 6641 through 6656. DEC says that in Vermont, owners of contaminated property may be liable for cleanup whether or not they caused the contamination, and that the program provides a way out of that liability chain. Participation is open to persons who intend to purchase a brownfield property and to persons who already own one, provided that they did not cause or contribute to the contamination.
In a Phase I ESA
This handbook reads BRELLA enrollments as the Vermont form of the state voluntary cleanup records that ASTM E1527-21 lists as a standard source; the pages read link no list of BRELLA sites, so the pairing is the handbook's reading. The general reading of a voluntary cleanup listing is on the VCP page. Four Vermont details shape how to read an enrollment.
- Enrollment is not a certificate. DEC issues a Certificate of Completion once cleanup goals are achieved. A prospective purchaser that enrolled early may obtain one as soon as cleanup is substantially complete, and may withdraw from the program early at any time, provided the site has been stabilized and the purchaser is complying with 10 V.S.A. section 6644. Check whether a certificate was issued before treating the site as finished.
- A certificate may or may not pass to a buyer. DEC says the benefits of the certificate attach to the property and may be transferred to successor owners. It also says a prospective purchaser can obtain a personal release from liability in the form of a certificate, and that this certificate will not transfer to subsequent property owners. Check which kind was issued, and to whom.
- The certificate is in the land records. DEC says a Certificate of Completion is recorded in the land records of the property and may include land use restrictions. Look for it, and for any restriction it carries, in the title search.
- What the certificate closes. DEC says ordinary regulatory closure usually carries a reopener condition. The Certificate of Completion eliminates reopeners for pre-existing contamination discovered after the cleanup, for pre-existing contamination that was not regulated as a hazardous material at the time of the cleanup, and for more stringent cleanup standards set after the cleanup. DEC says it limits the developer's liability to the state for cleanup, and protects the holder from contribution claims by other persons who may be responsible for cleanup.
DEC also says the state does not pursue enforcement action against a BRELLA participant who is actively engaged in environmental investigation or cleanup.
How a party enters
A party interested in applying must attend a pre-application meeting. It then submits a completed application, through ANR Online, with a non-refundable $500 application fee, and receives an eligibility determination within 30 days. The applicant must give the public notice of its intent to apply, by posting a notice in the Town Clerk's office and publishing it in a newspaper with a general circulation in the community where the property is located.
How a cleanup is worked and closed is on the Contaminated sites page. Grants and loans for brownfield projects are on the Brownfields Program page.
Where to look a site up
- The pages read link no list or search of BRELLA sites.
- The Brownfields Program's mailing address is Department of Environmental Conservation, Brownfields Program, 1 National Life Drive, Davis 3, Montpelier, VT 05620-3521, and its phone is (802) 828-1138.
Getting the file
The BRELLA pages give no route of their own for a file. For a site's investigation and cleanup file, DEC's Contaminated Sites page says to contact the DEC project manager for reports, and to email the division staff it names to complete a public records request to review the entire site file. DEC's pages link, in their footer, Request public information and Department of Environmental Conservation Records Liaisons, both on the Agency of Natural Resources' public records page, which this handbook did not read.
Sources
Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation pages, read October 13, 2026, no modified date shown: