Identifying and disclosing sites that may be contaminated

Look-up site info

Find historical records about a site:

• Search the Site Registry
• Contact previous site owners or the local government for records about the site. Inspect buildings, property, equipment, land, surface water and vegetation to look for evidence that a Schedule 2 use has happened on the site
• Review historical aerial photos and land title records

If you need help looking up historical information or conducting inspections for Schedule 2 uses at your site, an environmental professional can help.

Review site uses

Review Schedule 2: Contaminated Sites Regulation to determine whether your site has had a listed use.

• Schedule 2 uses are only meant to represent commercial and industrial uses that could cause contamination. For example, a private resident completing maintenance and occasional repair of vehicles for personal use is not considered a Schedule 2 use. 
• If a commercial activity takes place on residential or agricultural land, regardless of municipal zoning, the activity must be declared as a Schedule 2 use when completing a Site Disclosure Statement

Consider the following to determine if a Schedule 2 use applies:

• Intent of the legislation and context provided in Schedule 2 (read both the category heading and individual item descriptions together)
• Information gathered from historical searches and site visits
• Main or core uses of the site and activities that were done in support of the main uses. It is possible to have an area of potential environmental concern without having a corresponding Schedule 2 use.
• If uses at the site happened at a scale that could have resulted in contamination

Qualified professionals should use their professional judgement when determining Schedule 2 uses.

Check if a site is exempt

Some sites with a history of Schedule 2 use are exempt from submitting a Site Disclosure Statement.

• Review the list of exemptions in Division 3 of the Contaminated Sites Regulation

​Note: Even if exempt, local governments may still request a completed SDS. If this happens, complete the fillable SDS form and submit it to the approving authority's email. 

Gather the right information

To complete a Site Disclosure Statement, you'll need:

• The approving authority's email address if you're applying for subdivision and zoning approvals or building and development permits. This must be entered at the top of the statement
• The site's street address, or if it doesn't have one, the nearest street name or intersection
• Latitude and longitude coordinates for the centre of the site, accurate to 0.5 of a second. For help with this, check municipal websites, iMapBC, ParcelMap BC or Google Earth
• An electronic site map of appropriate scale to show site location and boundaries. Showing site features is also encouraged but not required. You can use a legal site survey map, or maps from municipal websites, iMapBC, ParcelMap BC or Google Earth
• The site parcel identifier (PID) and associated legal description for each parcel where a Schedule 2 use has occurred. Find PIDs on municipal property tax statements, or online using the BC Assessment website or the BC Land Title and Survey website. If no PID has been assigned for a site, look-up information on Crown lands using the Government Access Tool for Online Retrieval (GATOR)
• A list of all Schedule 2 uses that happened on the site
• Information about planned future uses for the site and what searches were completed to determine how the site was used in the past

If you're selling a property

Give the prospective buyer a copy of the Site Disclosure Statement. You can complete a copy of the statement for a buyer, online. Do not submit this to the ministry as it will not be processed. 

If you're applying to a municipality or approving officer

In Section V of the statement, make sure you've selected Local government/Approving officer. 

Important: Selecting any other checkbox in Section V will send your statement directly to the ministry.

After submission:

• You'll receive a confirmation email 
• The approving authority will be notified by email that a statement is ready for review. They have 15 days to review and decide if the statement is required and complete
• Your dashboard will show the status: "Awaiting municipality review"
• Be sure to check the status of your application regularly to avoid missing any requests from the ministry or approving authority

If the statement is complete the approving authority will submit the Site Disclosure Statement to the ministry. 

If additional information is requested by the approving authority

• Your dashboard status will update to "Additional Information Requested"
• A note with comments from the approving authority will appear at the top of the SDS
• Review the comments to see what is missing from your statement
• Complete your statement and resubmit it

Restrictions on municipal applications

Submitting a Site Disclosure Statement to the ministry activates restrictions on approval of municipal applications under the following local government laws:

• Land Title Act: Section 85.1 (for subdivision)
• Local Government Act: Section 557
• Vancouver Charter: Section 571B
• Islands Trust Act: Section 34.1

To remove a restriction, you need to apply for and obtain one of these ministry documents and give it to the approving authority:

• A certification document
  • The certification document must be valid and relevant to the proposed future development
• A release notice

An environmental professional can give advice about which of these documents is the best option for your site.

For all other reasons

Submit your statement to the ministry using the SRS Web App if you are: 

• Decommissioning or ceasing operations on a site
• Involved in insolvency or bankruptcy proceedings
• In foreclosure or receivership of a site
• Ordered to by a director

If you're decommissioning or ceasing operations at a site

Within the first year after submitting a Site Disclosure Statement, complete a site investigation and submit a Site Risk Classification Report to the ministry (unless the director gives a different timeframe).

If you're applying to a municipality or approving officer

There is no timeline in which site investigations must be completed, but site investigation may be required if you apply for a certification document or release notice to remove restrictions on relevant applications.