Moving Forward With Covid-19

Over the last 35 years, ASTI Environmental has worked to earn the trust of our clients by providing professional, and quality, environmental consulting services. As a result of the current COVID19 pandemic, ASTI is taking steps to ensure we continue to honor this commitment. At ASTI, we are monitoring the situation daily and implementing new health and safety policies and procedures as we deem necessary.

Currently, we are moving forward with our existing contracts and are continuing to accept new work. A month ago, we implemented new policies and procedures to safeguard our employees and clients while competing projects to meet your closing and financing deadlines. To our clients, we assure you that we are still committed to working safely in your best interest, even in times of uncertainty. The following procedures will apply until further notice:

• Field work for site inspections will only be conducted on vacant land, or in unoccupied, vacant or idle commercial/industrial buildings. For properties with occupied or residential buildings, we will conduct a site inspection on the property and building exterior only. We will NOT enter any residential or occupied structure at this time unless we use respirators, and full haz-mat suits.

• We are asking building owners with occupied buildings to conduct a video conference on their phone as they walk us through a tour of the building so that we can conduct the internal inspection.

• We anticipate that municipal and government offices will be closed at least through May 1, so we will keep you informed of any delays or data gaps associated with file reviews at both municipal and state office buildings.

• Delayed FOIA requests that are not critical to the Phase I ESA conclusions will be defined as “data gaps” in the final report so as not to delay report delivery.

• For any report published with a data gap resulting from the inability to inspect a building, ASTI will conduct the building inspection free of charge after it is determined safe to enter occupied buildings. This must be conducted within 180 days of the report date to clear the data gap.

SHOULD YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, OR CONCERNS, ABOUT YOUR CURRENT OR FUTURE CONTRACTS, PLEASE CONTACT TOM WACKERMAN AT 810.599.5463

FIRST STEP IN THE McLOUTH STEEL PROPERTY CLEAN-UP ALMOST DONE

MSC Land Company LLC (MSC) has almost completed the first phase of clean-up for this former steel mill in Trenton, Michigan with the assistance of ASTI Environmental.  This 183-acre parcel was used for steel manufacturing until 1995 and was listed on the Nation Priorities List (NPL) and designated a superfund site in May of 2019.  The work is being completed under a perspective purchaser agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and under the supervision of the EPA and EGLE. The project requires compliance with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), the Clean Air Act (CAA), the Clean Water Act (CWA), and the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA), as well as all applicable state and local regulations.

MSC retained ASTI Environmental to assist with the technical and environmental aspects of the final agreement, to develop and implement work plans, to develop and manage the project schedule, to conduct environmental assessments, and to provide project management services. Site redevelopment will require multiple phases to remove historical impediments, clean-up impacts, and implement due care obligations to prepare the property.  The current phase is limited to removal and processing of liquid wastes, transformers and asbestos containing building materials, as well as demolition of all 45 structures and backfill of all subsurface pits, sumps and lagoons.

When work began shortly after acquiring the property, ASTI transitioned to provide on-site project management and implementation of the Dust Control Work Plan, including staffing and equipment for the air monitoring and sampling program. Additional work ASTI has been completing is overseeing the removal of PCB transformers and investigating other PCB impacted areas. ASTI also plays a role on the site by performing concrete sampling for both PCB investigations and determining usage as inert material. Once data analyses have been received ASTI also reviews and creates the sampling data reports.  

Throughout the project ASTI has aided MSC with handling questions and requests of information from the interested public and regulators.  ASTI has been an integral resource for MSC, providing them with sound environmental consultation and target driven project management services for this large and demanding project.

October 2018

April 2020

ASTI ENVIRONMENTAL ONE OF THE FIRST TO RECEIVE FUNDS FROM THE CARES ACT PAYCHECK PROTECTION PROGRAM

On April 3rd, 2020, only a week after being authorized under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, small businesses were able to apply for a loan from the first round of $349 billion set aside for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). ASTI was among the first to apply and one of the first in Michigan to be approved to receive the loan, thanks in large part to the great staff at Bank of Ann Arbor. Although we typically obtain redevelopment and business incentives for our clients, this was one time where our incentive group’s understanding of the regulations and requirements made a big difference for our staff.  

ASTI, through the PPP funding, will be able to retain all professional and support staff during this unprecedented shut-down and therefore will be able to continue to serve our clients’ needs and develop tools for our assessment, compliance, incentive, remediation and restoration products.   

Wackerman Honored for his Service to the Building Industry

ASTI’s President and co-founder, Thomas Wackerman was honored earlier this year by the Home Builders Association (HBA) for his continued professional services to the building industry.  Tom has been in the environmental services business for over 45 years, managing  ASTI through its 35 year anniversary  in 2020. ASTI currently has over 3,500 clients around the country serviced by a staff of 50  professionals in five offices.  We have completed over 13,000 projects across the nation and in Eastern Europe, Canada and Mexico. Along with managing the company and his own environmental projects, Tom also works as a real estate developer and has obtained more than $300M in brownfield redevelopment incentives for his clients  urban restoration and construction projects.

Tom has worn many other hats in his career, serving as a professor at Wayne State University for 22 year and trainer and presenter for the Bureau of Land Management and other national trade and technical conferences. Tom currently sits on the board of the HBA, and previously on the board for the University of Michigan/Urban Land Institutes Real Estate Forum for 25 years. He previously also sat on the board of Leadership Michigan and chaired the Air & Waste Management Association (formerly the Air Pollution Control Association) for 10 years.

Chapman Joins ASTI as Phase I Group Leader

ASTI Environmental delighted for Pam Chapman to join our team as a group leader of our Phase I division. Pam brings with her over 28 years of experience in the environmental industry, working in a variety of areas including remedial investigations, risk assessment, remediation, and development of remedial action plans. Pam is a certified professional engineer and a certified environmental professional. Before entering the industry, Pam did her studies here in Michigan at the University of Michigan and got her B.S.E in Civil Engineering.  She has worked on numerous residential, commercial, and industrial sites across the state. When she is not working Pam can be found running every from Downtown Detroit to a Swamp in Florida. She recently participated the Everglades Ultra Race in Fakahatchee State Park, where she did their 50-mile race. We are very pleased to have Pam as an the leader of our Phase I group and look forward to watching the team grow under her guidance.

Oslosky Named Director of Western Great Lakes Office

ASTI Environmental is thrilled to welcome Greg Oslosky as the director of our Western Great Lakes office located in Grand Rapids, MI which opened in 2002. Greg is a licensed professional geologist, with over 14 years’ experience in environmental consulting and remediation.   He is originally from Pittsburg, PA but headed south to study at the University of South Florida and is returning to Michigan to be closer to his wife’s family who call Michigan home.   In his career, Greg was a part of the rapid response team for the BP Gulf Oil Spill in 2010.   While on the team Greg assisted the Discoverer Enterprise; a drillship, in collecting samples from the well riser and spent over 2 days at sea.   When he’s not working, Greg can be found hanging out with his wife Rhonda, and kids Samantha (9yo) and Aaron (7yo).   Greg is a valuable member of our team of directors and we look forward to the work that him and the Grand Rapids team will accomplish.