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Risk Assessment

Enforcement Actions

The DEQ undertakes enforcement actions to preserve safe environmental conditions throughout Wyoming. 

This page contains information on the enforcement actions that the Solid and Hazardous Waste Division may undertake, as well as a record of enforcement actions that have been undertaken by SHWD.

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Electronic Document Submittal

In response to the Governor's request to limit contact and the move toward most WDEQ staff working remotely for the near future, the Solid and Hazardous Waste Division (SHWD) have made electronic document submittal available. This includes work plans, reports, general correspondence and Solid Waste permit applications. Electronic submittal forms are now available for SHWD programs. Please choose the appropriate form from the list of links below to upload documents. If submitted electronically, no hardcopy is required to be submitted unless you are contacted by SHWD staff with a request to submit the hard copy. Please note that SHWD is unable to accept comments on documents in public notice via these forms. Please refer to the public notice for instructions on how to submit comments.   

Hazardous Waste, Voluntary Remediation, Orphan Site Programs 
 https://bit.ly/WDEQ-SHWD-HW-VRP-upload  

Solid Waste Permitting & Corrective Action Program                      
 
Proposed Rules and Regulations

This page contains any proposed Rules or Regulations that are currently under development within the Solid and Hazardous Waste Division. 

Hazardous Waste Rules, Chapter 1

The Hazardous Waste Rules, Chapter 1, General Provisions were adopted and filed with the Wyoming Secretary of State on April 7, 2022.  See https://rules.wyo.gov/.

Solid Waste

The Solid Waste Permitting and Corrective Action Program is conducting a public outreach on proposed revisions to the Solid Waste Rules Chapter 3 Industrial Landfills Regulations.

Rules and Regulations

All official Wyoming State Rules and Regulations are kept at the Wyoming Secretary of State’s Office. Click here to view all current Rules and Regulations.

Risk Assessment

Risk assessment involves evaluating the human health and ecological risks at all VRP sites in order to protect the wellbeing of both. 

The VRP risk assessment approach is required at all VRP sites, including sites in the Independent Cleanup Process (ICP), and it consists of two processes: one for human health and the other for ecological receptors.

Human Health Risk Assessment

The approach for human health is a two-step process. First, Volunteers compare adequate site data to conservative, standardized risk-based screening levels found in Factsheet #12 Soil Cleanup Levels and the Groundwater Cleanup Levels in Factsheet #13 Groundwater Cleanup Levels.
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Second, if the site data exceed the screening levels, the Volunteer can choose to use the screening levels as the cleanup levels and begin cleanup immediately. Alternatively, the Volunteer can conduct a site-specific risk assessment to calculate risk under conditions of unrestricted and restricted land use.

The results of the site-specific risk assessment are compared to established risk limits (see Factsheet #11 Risk Assessment) to determine further cleanup actions, including establishment of a Use Control Area (UCA), as appropriate.

Ecological Risk Assessment

The DEQ recognizes not all cleanup sites will present the same types of ecological issues. In order to address this, DEQ has developed the following stepwise approach to ecological risk assessment:

 

  • Step 1: The site undergoes an Ecological Exclusion Assessment designed to identify cleanup sites where ecological receptors are unlikely to be present or affected.
  • Step 2: If further evaluation is needed after Step 1, the site undergoes an Ecological Scoping Assessment.
  • Step 3: If further evaluation is needed after Step 2, the site undergoes an Ecological Screening Assessment.
  • Step 4: If further evaluation is needed after Step 3, the site undergoes a Baseline/Field Ecological Risk Assessment.

Each subsequent step of the ecological risk assessment process is a more complex evaluation than the previous step. Some sites may be excluded from the ecological risk assessment process in the early steps, with relatively little effort.

If the early steps indicate a need for more complex assessment, then the information that has been already gathered will support and reduce the effort needed for subsequent ecological risk assessment procedures.

VRP12 Amoco Refinery - Before - brown tanks
VRP06 Amoco Refinery - After - Three Crowns Golf Course
DSC00533
Contact
Contact
 
VRP/HWCA Program Manager
Ben Luckey
200 W. 17th Street, 2nd Floor
Cheyenne, WY 82002  
307-777-5617
 
Cindi Martinez
Brownfields and Orphan Sites Remediation Program Supervisor
200 W. 17th Street, 2nd Floor
Cheyenne, WY 82002
307-777-2948
Announcements
Announcements

Please see the documents below for information on Voluntary Remediation Program activities: 

Additional Information
Additional Information

This tab contains a variety of additional information and resources pertaining to the Voluntary Remediation Program. Click through the links to access this information. 

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Public Participation
Public Participation

The Voluntary Remediation Program establishes two unique avenues for public participation:

  1. Initial Notice Regarding Acceptance into the VRP
    Volunteers must mail a letter to owners of property adjacent to the site notifying the owners of the potential contamination. This letter also must provide instructions for comments and to request a public participation plan (see Fact Sheet #2 for a description of a public participation plan - needs link).

    Volunteers must publish a display ad for four consecutive weeks in a newspaper with general circulation in the county where the site is located.

  2. Notice Regarding the Proposed Adoption of a Remedy Agreement
    Volunteers must mail a second letter to owners of property adjacent to the site notifying the owners of the proposed remedy along with instructions for how to make comments or to request a public hearing.

    Volunteers must also publish a display ad for four consecutive weeks in a newspaper with general circulation in the county where the site is located.

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Site Lists
Site Lists

This tab contains content and information about the Voluntary Remediation Program sites around Wyoming. There are currently over 200 sites in the VRP, and new Volunteers are entering the program and beginning cleanup at their sites.
To see the interactive VRP GIS-based Flex Viewer, click here. An updated static map and a User's Guide for the Flex Viewer will be available soon.

To view a detailed VRP site list that includes locations with Institutional Controls please see the list below. This list provides specific information about each VRP site, including:

  • Volunteer names
  • Site locations
  • Dates that the sites entered the program and finalized a preliminary remediation agreement or remedy agreement

If the download box is not working below, please click here.

Success Stories
Success Stories

The SHWD Voluntary Remediation Program has enabled the successful cleanup and restoration of contaminated lands in a number of communities around Wyoming. The impacts made through the VRP are not only enduring for these communities – they're also achieved through economically feasible practices that encourage the long-term, productive usage of these lands. 

Browse through the following stories to learn more about the program's established successes.

Jackson Hole VRP Site

The Jackson Hole Mountain Resort maintenance shop was a classic brownfield site. A developer was interested in purchasing this property and turning it into a world-class hotel complex. However, potential environmental issues presented an obstacle for obtaining financing for the hotel complex.

The VRP worked diligently with the environmental consultant and the developer to move the site through the independent cleanup process (ICP). Earlier site investigations, combined with soil removals, revealed no remaining environmental concerns; therefore, the VRP was able to provide the environmental liability assurances necessary to secure funding for the purchase of the property and construction of the hotel complex. Today, in the place where a small maintenance shop once stood, a beautiful four-star hotel and condominium complex rest in the shadow of the beautiful Teton Mountains near Jackson Hole.

City of Evanston VRP Site

In 1972, the Union Pacific Railroad gifted the City of Evanston with the historical Roundhouse and Railyard Complex, which is also located in Evanston. The buildings, soils, and groundwater on the site were contaminated with a variety of organic and inorganic contaminants.

The City of Evanston, in an effort to remediate and restore this site, applied and was accepted into the DEQ's VRP on February 4, 2003. VRP staff worked extensively with the City of Evanston to evaluate and identify different options for addressing the contamination that were protective of human health and the environment and were cost effective and economically feasible. In addition, VRP staff worked with the City of Evanston to help identify potential funding sources for remediation and restoration efforts. In 2006, DEQ determined that the Roundhouse and Railyard Complex met the definition of a brownfield and that the City of Evanston was a favorable candidate to receive Brownfields Cleanup Assistance.

The City of Evanston is using a phased approach to remediate and restore the site. The first phase has focused on cleaning up and restoring the historic machine shop, and constructing a paved parking lot and pedestrian plaza. The machine shop and parking lot are completed and the pedestrian plaza is underway. The Brownfields Cleanup Assistance was used for the cleanup of the parking lot area. The next phase (2) will focus on remediation and restoration of the Roundhouse and surrounding area. The City of Evanston is currently pursuing additional funding sources to help with Phase 2.

Once cleaned up and renovated, the Roundhouse and Railyard Complex will provide a tremendous revitalization focus for downtown Evanston and a significant economic benefit for the community.

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