Hey guys, I toured this property today, and I came across an overflowing 5-gallon bucket of motor oil just inside the fenced property line. There’s oil all over the ground around it, spreading out a couple of feet. The property is 5 acres with a small swampy creek downhill, maybe 100 feet away from the oil. It’s semi-rural in southern Washington, zoned agricultural, and surrounded by farms on well water. Honestly, I’m super surprised the sellers didn’t clean this up before showing it. Should we just let this one go even though it seems perfect in so many ways for us?
I work in environmental stuff for an oil company, and typically, if there’s an oil spill, the remediation involves digging up contaminated soil and taking it to a proper disposal facility. Washington probably has rules about this, but I’m not sure. If it’s near a road, it might be illegal dumping, and you definitely don’t want to inherit that. If there’s an existing well, you should ask for testing from a legit environmental consulting firm. If the sellers refuse, I’d walk away.
You can get a Phase I environmental test done. You could ask the seller to cover it; it costs about $5,000 for possible soil contamination. I suspect this is a localized issue, and removing some contaminated dirt should resolve it. It shouldn’t be too expensive.
Just a heads up, it could end up being a big deal if this has been going on for a long time. The cleanup could cost a lot, maybe even $50,000 if it’s been releasing oil for years. The term ‘strict liability’ means if there’s an environmental release on your land, you’re on the hook for cleanup. And if it spreads to neighboring land, you might be liable for that too. There’s no cap on cleanup costs, so definitely serious stuff.
Before considering a lawyer, definitely get a Phase I done to find out what the scope of the issue is. It’s just a 5-gallon bucket, not a tanker truck spilling everywhere.
My brother-in-law works on oil remediation projects. He’d say you need an environmental test to see how long that area was used for oil disposal. It’s likely not just a one-time thing. If the owner didn’t mention this in the property disclosure, they might be in trouble. Make sure to insist on an inspection. You don’t want to deal with contaminated water down the line. The state EPA won’t be happy either if something seeps into the ground.
So the sellers said the father was living in an ADU on the property and just changed his oil, leaving the old oil in the bucket outside while he went out of town. Sounds like he might not be new to this. I was told that someone will definitely go over there to put a lid on that bucket tomorrow. Not when they listed the property two months ago, but tomorrow.