Vermont
Spill Management
The Spill Program of the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) assesses the environmental impact of hazardous materials spills, oversees their cleanup, and enforces the environmental laws and regulations that a release of hazardous materials triggers. DEC says a team member is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, year-round. The program works with first responders and responsible parties to determine whether a spill impacts or threatens sensitive receptors such as surface waters or drinking water wells, and ensures the cleanup is performed to state standards.
In a Phase I ESA
ASTM E1527-21 does not name state spill lists among its standard record sources. The federal counterpart of a state spill list is the emergency response record described on the ERNS page. A Vermont spill report still matters, because it can be the only state record of a release that never became a cleanup case. Storage tank releases are reported here too: DEC's tank pages send them to this program.
Which spills are reported
DEC's page says these must be reported:
- any discharge of hazardous waste, or release of hazardous material, that exceeds 2 gallons;
- a discharge of hazardous waste, or release of hazardous material, of 2 gallons or less that poses a potential or actual threat to human health and the environment;
- a discharge of hazardous waste, or release of hazardous material, that equals or exceeds its reportable quantity under CERCLA as specified under 40 CFR 302.4.
Spills must be reported immediately, as the response allows, by speaking directly with someone from Emergency Management or a member of the Spill Program. DEC says a spill may not be reported by email, text or any written form, and that a voicemail alone will not suffice. A spill reporting form may be submitted to document initial and follow-up response actions, but not to make the initial notification.
Because a release of 2 gallons or less need not be reported unless it poses a threat or meets its CERCLA reportable quantity, ask about small releases at the interview as well as searching the database.
The program can hire cleanup contractors when the responsible party cannot be identified in a timely manner or is unwilling or unable to conduct the cleanup, and DEC says it is obligated to pursue cost recovery from potentially responsible parties when state funds have been spent.
Where to look a site up
- DEC's Spill Database contains recent and historical spill information, including the release location, the type of product released and the nature of the incident. DEC says to search it by facility name, address, responsible party or report number, and to click "view" on a spill to find its spill manager's contact information.
- Spills are reported during office hours (Monday to Friday, 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) at 802-828-1138, or to the 24-hour HAZMAT hotline at 800-641-5005. For impacts or potential impacts to surface water, DEC says the National Response Center must also be called, at 800-424-8802.
Getting the file
The Spill Management page says the database gives the contact information of the spill manager for each spill. It gives no route of its own for a spill 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: