Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2275 – Demand by secretary; remedial action
Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2275
- Discharge: means discharge as defined in La. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2272
- Disposal: means disposal as defined in La. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2272
- Facility: means facility as defined in La. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2272
- Hazardous substance: means any gaseous, liquid, or solid material which because of its quantity, concentration, or physical, chemical, or biological composition when released into the environment poses a substantial present or potential hazard to human health, the environment, or property, and which material is identified or designated as being hazardous by rules and regulations adopted and promulgated by the secretaries of the Department of Environmental Quality or of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, regardless of whether it is intended for use, reuse, or is to be discarded. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2272
- Person: means any individual, municipality, public or private corporation, partnership, firm, the United States Government, and any agent or subdivision thereof or any other juridical person, which shall include, but not be limited to, trusts, joint stock companies, associations, the state of Louisiana, political subdivisions of the state of Louisiana, commissions, and interstate bodies. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2004
- Pollution source: means pollution source as defined in La. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2272
- Secretary: means the secretary of the Department of Environmental Quality. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 30:2004
- Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
A. When the secretary determines that a discharge or disposal of a hazardous substance has occurred or is about to occur which may present an imminent and substantial endangerment to health or the environment, he shall make a written demand on every owner, generator, transporter, disposer, operator, or other responsible person who has participated in the disposal or discharge of a hazardous substance at the site to undertake remedial actions at the site in accordance with a plan approved by the secretary or pay to the secretary the cost of the remedial action to be taken by the secretary.
B. The order for remedial action shall prescribe a reasonable time for reply. If, after the time limit provided in the written demand, the secretary has received no reply or has received a refusal to comply with the demand, he shall institute a suit in the district court of proper venue demanding that the defendants bear the remedial costs at the site or asking the court to issue an order that the site be closed or any other order necessary to abate, contain, or remove the hazard.
C. If a person fails to respond to a demand to undertake remedial action, the secretary may take all actions authorized by this Subtitle prior to filing suit for recovery.
D. Notwithstanding the provisions of Subsection A of this Section, if the secretary, pursuant to his investigation, determines that it is not feasible for him to make demand on every potentially responsible person at the site of a pollution source or facility, he may limit his demand to those persons he deems most responsible based on the volume of hazardous substances disposed of or discharged, the toxicity of substances disposed of or discharged, failure to exercise due diligence in the handling, maintenance, or disposal at the site, knowledge of the risk associated with the discharge or disposal at the site, and other such criteria as the secretary may deem necessary.
E. Notwithstanding any other provision of law in this Subtitle, in any order pursuant to this Section requiring an owner, operator, or responsible person to test, monitor, and analyze to ascertain the nature and extent of any pollution source or requiring any owner, operator, or responsible person to contain, abate, or clean up the site, the secretary may waive any permits which might otherwise be required under this Subtitle. No such waiver shall be deemed to authorize any discharge or emission which would endanger the environment or public health.
Acts 1984, No. 791, §1; Acts 1986, No. 306, §1, eff. June 30, 1986; Acts 1988, No. 253, §1, eff. July 6, 1988; Acts 1988, No. 624, §1.