The grace in an industrial or commercial real estate transaction (to paraphrase the playwright Ben Jonson) lies in its simplicity. However, relevant Connecticut environmental law suggests that our legislature’s notion of simplicity depends on Rube Goldberg for definition. Amendments to the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) designed to simplify brownfield redevelopment have been effectively nullified in Connecticut by recent amendments to the Hazardous Waste Establishment Transfer Act. As a result, Connecticut brownfield transactions remain unduly complicated and costly.
The Brownfields Revitalization and Environmental Restoration Act of 2001 made a number of important and welcome modifications to CERCLA. Among other things, the act created liability carve outs for new purchasers and for landowners contiguous to a contaminated site. As a matter of federal law, new owners and persons who own property contaminated by off-site migration are not liable for remediation if:
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