BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1. Amend Chapter 60, Title 7, Delaware Code, by adding a new § 6002(61) and (62) to read as follows:
"(61) 'Debris Disposal Area' means an excavation, pit or depression into which land clearing debris, along with small amounts of construction or demolition waste incidental to construction, has been placed and which is not a permitted or approved waste management facility.
Section 2. Amend Chapter 60, Title 7, Delaware Code, by adding a new §6040 to read as follows:
"§6040. Debris Disposal Area Remediation.
(a) The Secretary may develop, implement and administer a program for the identification, investigation, assessment, mitigation and remediation of debris disposal areas created as part of the construction of residential or subdivision developments. Any person who caused or contributed to the creation or use of a debris disposal area on or after December 8, 1988 shall be subject to enforcement for illegal disposal and may be required by order from the Department to remove and properly dispose of such material. The Department is authorized to develop policies, procedures and guidelines and may establish, amend, modify and repeal, after notice and public hearing, such regulations as may be necessary to effectuate the purposes of this section.
(b) Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this Section, any such appropriations available to the Department by the General Assembly to effectuate the purposes of this Section shall be used to identify, investigate, assess, mitigate or remediate debris disposal areas created or used before December 8, 1988. Up to fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) of any such funds available in fiscal year 1999 may also be used to conduct a study to better determine the scope and extent of the debris disposal problem and the estimated cost and timeframe for addressing this problem. In addition to this study, the Department shall further evaluate feasible and appropriate options for providing long-term funding to support this program. The Department shall solicit participation and input from representatives of interested and affected parties in performing this evaluation. The Department shall report the findings from the study and the evaluation and make recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly no later than March 15, 1999.
(c)There shall be established within the Department an account to be known as the 'Debris Disposal Area Remediation Account'. All funds made available to the Department in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) of this section above shall be placed in the Debris Disposal Area Remediation Account to be used by the Department or its agents to carry out the purposes of this section. The Department may establish presumptive remedies to address the remediation of debris disposal areas. These funds shall be used exclusively for the purpose of identifying, investigating, assessing, mitigating or remediating debris disposal areas and associated effects as determined by the Department and shall not be used for any other problem resulting from or relating to the construction of the residence or subdivision by the homebuilder or developer including fixtures and improvements added by homeowners.
(d) The Department may use funds from the Debris Disposal Area Remediation Account to identify, investigate, assess, mitigate or remediate any debris disposal area constructed, used or filled subsequent to December 8, 1988 if the party responsible for the area does not respond as required to any order issued by the Secretary, and if such site presents an imminent threat to human health, safety or the environment as determined by the Department. In addition to the assessment of any penalty as provided in §6005 (a) and (b) of this chapter, any person who fails to comply with any order issued by the Secretary to identify, investigate, assess, mitigate or remediate any debris disposal area may be liable for all costs incurred by the Department to do so as provided in 56005 (c) of this chapter.
(c) Except to the extent provided herein, no provision contained in this section shall relieve any party from compliance with or liability under any other environmental statute, including, but not limited to, 7 Del, C., Chapters 60, 62, 63, 66, 74 and 77."
Approved July 13, 1998