Overview

On behalf of the Virginia Waste Management Board, the Division of Land Protection and Revitalization is responsible for carrying out the mandates of the Virginia Waste Management Act, as well as meeting Virginia's federal obligations under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation Liability Act (CERCLA).

The division's programs protect human health and Virginia’s land and ground water resources while encouraging the reuse of contaminated properties. The division ensures protection of these resources through proactive regulation of solid and hazardous waste management. The program also addresses historic contamination of sites through the cleanup of contaminated soil and ground water.    

The division works with citizens, businesses, local governments, and other state and federal agencies to develop and implement regulations and policy, and to pursue necessary enforcement actions.

Core Responsibilities

• Regulating solid and hazardous wastes. This includes the treatment and disposal of solid wastes while ensuring the proper handling of hazardous waste from generation to final treatment and disposal.
• Encouraging the safe recovery and reclamation of materials from waste to facilitate their beneficial reuse while minimizing risk to human health and the environment.
• Overseeing cleanup of contaminated sites through regulatory and voluntary programs.
• Facilitating the timely and efficient revitalization of environmentally distressed property.
• Proactively monitoring ground water resources for contaminants, using risk-based strategies to address impacts.
• Monitoring the effectiveness of long-term cleanup activities, ensuring that proper institutional controls are in place to protect human health and the environment.
• Ensuring that parties involved in the management of solid and hazardous wastes meet financial responsibility requirements for the proper closure and decommissioning of regulated activities.
• Auditing division functions to ensure that programs implement regulations in a timely and consistent manner.
• Planning, in partnership with other organizations, for environmental responses to unplanned natural or manmade incidents. 
• Working with other state and local first responders to provide prompt investigation and management of environmental releases.
• Conducting inspections of aboveground product and underground petroleum storage tank systems.
• Managing a reimbursement fund to address releases from petroleum tanks.