Storage and use of hazardous materials is always a big concern for anyone providing commercial property management in Los Angeles. This is usually a big issue for dry cleaners, auto body shops, gas stations, and other commercial enterprises that regularly come into contact with hazardous materials. Â Anyone who manages a personal property needs to know their way around the basics of hazardous materials storage and disposal.
Hazardous Material Experience
A lot of the information you need about hazardous materials comes with experience. We had to clean up a contaminated soil situation and it took a long time. The entire process stretched over a couple of years, but then we got a clean bill of health from the water board. It involved testing the water and depositing enzymes to eat up or rid the soil of carcinogenic and toxic contaminants. Hopefully, you never get to that place where you’re facing a toxic situation. If you do, you need to have a property manager who is experienced with poisons and how to remove them.
Revenue Costs of Hazardous Materials
It can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to clean up hazardous materials. Usually, problems occur when these materials aren’t being disposed of properly. You need to make sure your property manager understands the law and how to inspect for problems. Noticing something immediately can be the difference between spending a couple hundred dollars and several hundred thousands of dollars. Your management company should be walking through any property that works with hazardous materials regularly. Make sure there isn’t any dumping, flushing, or draining of hazardous materials.
Holding Tenants Responsible
Your property manager can use visual evidence and tests to make sure everything is clean and compliant at your property. Regular inspections will ensure there are no toxic issues to deal with. Holding tenants accountable means getting them to do things the right way. They may need to be told how to dispose of substances properly. These problems don’t always have to be huge catastrophic clean ups. We found water in the ground at one client’s property and it was simply a matter of pumping out the water and paying a couple hundred dollars to dispose of the water. It’s 
always better to find problems in advance and deal with remediation instead of having government agencies cite the owners for those problems.
If you have any questions about this topic or anything pertaining to commercial property management in Los Angeles, please contact us at Los Angeles Property Management Group.
