Created as part of the Department of Health and Environmental Sciences in 1973, the Environmental Sciences Division remained part of DHES from 1974 to 1990, during which time they were responsible for monitoring air quality and water quality, solid waste management, administering the Subdivision Bureau, and ensuring food and consumer safety, and occupational health. In 1991, though still a part of the Department of Health and Environmental Sciences, the role of the Environmental Sciences Division was considerably expanded to include: Natural Resource Damage Assessment, a Petroleum Tank Release Compensation Board, a Superfund Section, and an Underground Storage Tanks Section.

In 1991, several of the functions of what would become the Remediation Division (i.e. petroleum tank release compensation, superfund site clean-up, underground storage tank oversight) were overseen by the Environmental Sciences Division of the Department of Health and Environmental Sciences. The Environmental Sciences Division became its own separate department, renamed the Department of Environmental Quality, in 1995; by 1996 the Environmental Remediation Division was formed, managing federal and state superfund sites, and LUSTs (leaking underground storage tanks). In 1997, the Environmental Remediation Division became simply the Remediation Division. By 1998, the Environmental Remediation Division had been renamed the Remediation Division, and was comprised of three bureaus: the Hazardous Waste Site Cleanup Bureau, responsible primarily for superfund cleanup, and LUSTs); the Mine Waste Cleanup Bureau, responsible for abandoned mine reclamation and mine-related superfund sites; and the Technical Services Bureau, which was responsible for underground storage tank permitting and installer licensing. In 2000, two new bureaus were added to the Remediation Division: the Information Services section, which took over underground storage tank installer licensing; and the Petroleum Fund Services Section, which processed petroleum clean-up claims.

At present, the Remediation Division is responsible for: Overseeing investigation and cleanup activities at state and federal Superfund sites; reclaiming abandoned mine lands; implementing corrective actions at sites with leaking underground storage tanks (LUSTs); overseeing groundwater remediation at sites where agricultural and industrial chemical spills have caused groundwater contamination; petroleum tank release compensation; and Comprehensive Environmental Response. The Remediation Division is contains the Federal Superfund Bureau, the Abandoned Mine Lands Bureau, and the Hazardous Waste Cleanup Bureau.