- background on brownfields and Superfund
- technical and legal resources
- issues and resources involved in brownfield and inner city redevelopment
- environmental justice
- the relationship of brownfields to economic development
- federal policy & regulations re. brownfields
- state & local brownfield redevelopment efforts
A brownfield is a potentially contaminated piece of property that is not currently being used. It may be abandoned or just lying vacant. The term brownfield is usually used to mean a former industrial property, but it can also be a former residential property that has contamination problems from asbestos or illegal waste dumping.
EPA definition:
Abandoned, idled, or under-used industrial and commercial facilities where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination.Definition from Dallas Brownfield Program:
...[brownfield abandonment] leads to development outside of urban areas in pristine "greenfields." The goal of the Brownfields program is to encourage revitalization and reutilization of the nation's urban brownfields.
The term brownfield was actually used long before passage of Superfund, and once had a meaning separate from environmental contamination. In the early 1980's, as industry moved out of older city centers, authors began to comment on the social cost of increasing development on undeveloped land while abandoned property lay idle.
Those social costs included both loss of valuable environmental resources and the costs of the massive displacement of labor. Those who could afford to move were at the mercy of industry decisions to leave cities, and those who could not were left with fewer job opportunities and decaying public services.
Because of this history, the issue of brownfield redevelopment has always focused on job creation and the many impacts of the decline of manufacturing activity in U.S. cities.
Although the term "brownfield" existed before Superfund, much of the debate and literature surrounding brownfields is centered on the economic and environmental impacts of Superfund.
Superfund is the common name for the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), passed in 1980. Superfund set up a framework of strict liability for people or companies associated with a contaminated property, and also created a large fund (financed by taxes on petroleum and other chemical industries) to finance litigation and cleanup of severely contaminated sites. (The taxing authority of Superfund expired several years ago, so the fund is now decreasing.)
The Superfund is used to fund cleanup of the 1,350+ sites which have been put on the National Priority List. The Superfund can be used to pay for cleanup and for the costs of suing owners for cleanup costs. The cleanup process is slow, because the contamination is so severe and litigation often takes many years. The EPA hopes to have 900 sites completely cleaned and ready for development by 2001. The EPA says that 75% of cleanup costs are borne by responsible parties.
The term "brownfield" is now used to refer to sites that are or may be contaminated, but which will not be listed on the National Priority List, so will not be cleaned up with federal funds (or targeted by EPA for litigation). A portion of brownfields are listed in CERCLIS - the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Contamination and Liability Information System. Sites remain on CERCLIS while EPA investigates the contamination. If the EPA determines that the site will not be litigated over or cleaned up by the federal government, it can de-list the site and give it NFRAP status (No Further Remedial Action Planned).
Brownfields are affected primarily by the liability framework set up by CERCLA. Liability is strict, joint and several, and retroactive. That means that the EPA can sue one of several contributors to pollution, can sue for pollution that occurred before environmental regulations were in place, and does not need to prove negligence in order to hold a party responsible.
The impact of all this on economic development is significant but complex. Several effects have been described:
- Property owners decide not to put their properties on the market for fear of what an environmental assessment would uncover.
- Banks decline to foreclose on potentially contaminated properties when an owner defaults, for fear of entering the "chain of title" on the property and facing liability for cleanup costs.
- Banks will also engage in "greenlining" - refusing to provide financing for purchase or development of potentially contaminated property. Banks have been held liable in the past for properties they financed, even if they played only a minimal role in management of the property. This liability potential also discourages banks from engaging in a relationship with a property owner that might encourage safer environmental practices.
- Municipalities choose not to take title to properties with delinquent property taxes for the same reason.
- Insurance companies refuse to insure properties they think might be contaminated, or to insure mortgages on such properties.
The point at which environmental liability becomes the deciding factor in a decision not to foreclose, sell, or develop a property is unclear, but much of the brownfield debate has focused on relieving the liability pressure to get potentially contaminated properties back on the market and therefore increase the likelihood of their being cleaned up.
Other Superfund links:
where are brownfields located?
Brownfields are located all over the United States (and all over the world). The northeast and midwest contain a greater number of brownfields because those areas experienced massive industrial abandonment several decades ago. Some areas in the southwest and southeast are beginning to have a problem with brownfields, but because the economies in those areas are much stronger and the industrial growth occurred after environmental regulation, brownfields do not pose as severe a problem to "Sunbelt" cities as they do in the "Rustbelt" area. You can look at a map of EPA projects to get an idea of the distribution of brownfields across the U.S.
Brownfields are also located primarily in cities, although there are many rural brownfields, especially in former mining towns. Generally, urban brownfields are located in the poorest parts of the city, very close to downtown.
what are the issues in brownfield redevelopment?
There are many complex issues at stake on brownfield redevelopment. The evolution of brownfield policy has centered around Superfund reauthorization and amendment, economic development techniques, and concern for poor inner city and rural residents.
Costs of assessment
The cost of environmental property assessments, which are typically required by states for any property sales, is an important factor. There are three phases of assessments, of increasing expense and exhaustiveness. Many assistance programs target money to Phase 1 assessments, in order to eliminate uncertainty about site contamination. Very often, concerns about contamination are inflated or unjustified altogether, but property owners' reluctance to begin the assessment process can hold up clean sites.
Several companies have formed to assist developers with assessment costs and technology - see the technical resources information for examples.
Environmental laws
Superfund was reauthorized in 1986 by the Superfund Amendment and Reauthorization Act (SARA), and has come up for reauthorization every five years. The current congress is debating four reauthorization bills:
- HR 3262
- HR 2000
- HR 2727
- HR
3000
Legislative proposals
(this page is maintained by the NEMW and is updated frequently)
Environmental and advocacy agencies, such as the Natural Resource Defense Council, have endorsed HR 3262.
The main issues at stake in this year's (and previous years') reauthorization are liability, especially for parties that obtain the land after contamination occurred, and cleanup standards.
All federal proposals contain provisions for releases from liability for landowners that go through a state cleanup program. There is a general trend toward devolving control over cleanup to states and localities, so state autonomy is being widely supported.
The brownfields initiative resulted in changes to lender and fiduciary liability under CERCLA, via passage of the Asset Conservation, Lender Liability, and Deposit Insurance Protection Act of 1996.
Brownfield redevelopment is de facto an economic development issue. Redevelopment
requires attracting firms to a site, or assisting interested firms with regulatory and
capital issues. Brownfield redevelopment has also emerged as an economic development
issue because brownfields are typically in economically distressed areas, where job
creation and industry attraction are primary concerns.
Click here for more information.
Environmental justice advocates are particularly interested in brownfields. The environmental justice movement seeks to alter the economic patterns which lead to the disproportionate siting of hazardous waste and brownfields near poor and minority communities. Poor communities and communities with a large percentage of people of color are also disproportionately affected by environmental regulation and policy. Many people view brownfield redevelopment as an opportunity to improve the environmental health of poor inner-city residents. Activists are also wary of attempts to relax environmental regulations to facilitate brownfield redevelopment, because they believe that inner city residents will be put at risk both by the lowered cleanup standards and the environmental behavior of the industry being recruited. Click here for more information.
Brownfields initiatives exist at all levels of government: local, state, and federal. Numerous private companies have created a specialty in brownfield redevelopment, and many community organizations, especially in poor cities, have information on brownfields and their relations to inner city redevelopment and decline. In state governments, both environmental and economic development departments are typically involved in brownfield redevelopment. At the federal level, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) maintains the largest information base, but over 20 agencies have partnerships with the EPA brownfield initiative.
The EPA announced its Brownfield Economic Development Initiative in 1995, in response to criticisms of Superfund and the federal government's desire to provide resources for brownfield redevelopment.
- EPA's brownfield page
- Regional brownfield pages
Region 1 Region 2 Region 3 Region 4 Region 5 (very useful page) Region 6 Region 7 Region 8 Region 9 Region 10
The EPA conducts several programs to assist with the redevelopment of brownfields, with four main focus areas:
- Pilots
- Clarifying liability and cleanup issues
- Building partnerships and outreach among federal agencies, states, municipalities, and communities
- Fostering local job development and training initiatives
Brownfields Cleanup Assessment Pilots
These pilots are available to cities, states, counties, or tribes. Up to $300,000 is available to each pilot, to be used for assessment-related activities. The money is specifically prohibited from use for cleanup costs. The activities carried out by each pilot vary, but typical activities include:
- Identifying and prioritizing brownfield sites
- Comprehensive environmental planning
- GIS mapping of brownfield sites
- Developing models to facilitate future projects
- Community planning and empowerment
- Pollution prevention programs for sites at risk of abandonment
- Well installation to test groundwater
- Job training
- Education of lenders and developers
- Conducting preliminary assessments on selected sites
Some projects are focused on a particular brownfield site, others on a particular area (such as city core or waterfront), military base, or enterprise zone. Others are just focusing on creating a policy framework for the city, region, and state. Some pilot projects have a particular use or even a specific developer in mind.
Over 121 of these pilots have been awarded, and two new rounds of applications were accepted this year.
- EPA pilots page
- Map of pilot projects
- Guidelines
for EPA Pilots
EPA pilot application guidelines were reformulated with the assistance of the National Environmental Justice Action Committee (NEJAC), to focus on economic and environmental impacts of redevelopment projects - Showcase communities
16 showcase communities were announced April of 1998, chosen from the regional and national pilots.
Brownfields Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund (BCRLF)
This loan fund was created to help communities fund cleanup costs. The RLF
pilots given up to $350,000 to set up revolving loan funds to fund cleanup only - no funds
could be used for marketing, assessment, or other pre-cleanup activities. There are
no additional funds for the BCRLF program, so it will end with the expiration of the
current pilot projects.
Job Training
Applications for Job Training and Development Demonstration Pilots are being accepted
until May 29, 1998. Guidelines
Other resources offered by EPA:
- Available funding mechanisms
- Advice from pilot participants
- Guidebook of financial tools
- Industry partnerships page
The EPA also provides guidance and assistance to states and localities seeking to clarify liability issues and cleanup standards.
For example, the EPA issued guidelines to states for signing Memoranda of Agreement (MOA) with firms that participate in state-run cleanup programs. Because relief from liability is such a concern for some firms, and states cannot legal waive federal liability, EPA guidance and cooperation on this issue is critical to the success of state programs.
Listserv for brownfield updates
Other federal agencies that have partnerships with the EPA's brownfield initiative.
States vary widely in the degree of funding dedicated to brownfield redevelopment and the framework for addressing brownfields. Most states have Superfund statutes patterned after CERCLA, but those statutes have typically been amended to provide a looser liability framework than the federal statute. States cannot, however, waive federal liability under CERCLA for industries that have agreements with the state.
Most state initiatives are in the form of Voluntary Cleanup Programs, which set up the framework for developers to obtain funding and regulatory relief for redevelopment. Several states have agreements with the EPA under which developers that go through the state's VCP will receive some type of "comfort letter" from the EPA assuring that the EPA won't pursue the developer for contamination addressed by the developer's arrangement with the state. These assurances, however, are not absolute - the EPA has several degrees of assurance, but none of them can be used by a developer to stop a lawsuit if the EPA decides to bring one.
State VCP's are sometimes, but not always, housed in the state's economic development office. Some brownfield initiatives do not have an explicit economic development objective.
This is far from being an exhaustive list of local projects, but these pages contain good examples of both federally- and locally-funded brownfield initiatives.
- Louisville
- Emeryville, CA (EPA Pilot)
- Chicago
- Maryland
- Greatlakes page - great information
- Portland, OR
- New Jersey
- Seattle
- Delaware - information on their state VCP
- Pennsylvania - Land Recycling Program
- Ohio's Voluntary Action Program
- Berkshire and Pittsfield Counties, MA
- Portland, Oregon Brownfields Initiative
- Great Lakes Information Network brownfields page
The private sector has become very involved in brownfield redevelopment. Law firms, banks, and remediation/ redevelopment experts have created a niche market for brownfield redevelopment consultation.
The proliferation of articles in real estate journals suggests the opportunity that brownfields represent - particularly in cities that have strong potential for redevelopment, such as Chicago and Dallas. More about this in economic development.
Cleanstart
A very prominent private company that assists companies with brownfield cleanup -
their site has information on many brownfield projects. Cleanstart also maintains a
list of brownfield properties and current news.
E Data Resources
Access to a variety of assessment and industry-related data
AKT Environmental Consultants
Information on environmental site assessments
Reliance
National
An insurance company providing insurance for environmental cleanup
and redevelopment
Bank
of America
Maintains a site on sustainable development, with lots of
information about the issues and strategies associated with brownfield redevelopment
Environmental Bankers Association
Indiana Environmental Professionals' Website
Envirobiz
An environmental information network, often has articles about
brownfields news. They maintain an information service called Remediation Marketplace
Roy F. Weston, Inc.
A for-profit infrastructure redevelopment company, focusing on environmental
sustainability and stewardship. Features a brownfields book,
which contains information on projects and site assessment strategies (Weston managed the
first EPA brownfield pilot, in Bridgeport CT)
Consumers Renaissance Development Corporation (CRDC) - a non-profit Michigan corporation promoting redevelopment of brownfields in Michigan (with funding from Michigan Jobs Commission)
Brownfield
Realty Company
Not much information, but a good example of the real estate
industry's involvement in the brownfield market
Enviroflex
A listing of brownfields sites for sale
Area
Development Online
A site and facility planning database, with information on
government incentives and economic development agencies
O'Brien & Gere
An example of an engineering and construction company that offers
specialized assistance for brownfield redevelopment
research institutes
The following agencies have partnerships with EPA's brownfields initiative, and are conducting research on ways to facilitate brownfield redevelopment and clear up misconceptions about brownfields.
Northeast-Midwest Center
(NEMW)
A nonprofit agency researching environmental quality and economic
development - probably the most widely-published group, its staff include two experts on
brownfields
Carnegie-Mellon
Brownfields
A multidisciplinary research center dedicated to facilitating
brownfield redevelopment
Institute for Responsible Management
(IRM)
A non-profit agency focused on "charting and facilitating the brownfields
transformation." IRM maintains a database of brownfields pilots, with
information about particular activities.
International City/County Management Association (ICMA) - a professional and educational association focused on improvement the quality of local government.
Hazardous Materials Training & Research Institute (HMTRI) - promotes worker training and education to promote environmental quality. Also maintains the BLEST (Brownfields Leading to Environmental Solutions through Training) project
List of related law
& regulations
Maintained by EPA
Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly Special issue on brownfield reform legislation
Jenner &
Block
The environmental law department as this firm has been active in
brownfield discourse, and has some interesting articles on their site.
Fink
Zausmer, P.C.
A law firm with lots of information about brownfields, especially in
Michigan
Saul Ewing
Environmental law page containing information on PA, DE, NJ
environmental issues, and links to regulations and laws affecting redevelopment
Conservation Law Foundation
This site contains information on urban toxics, brownfields
Roadmap for innovative technology
options
Maintained by CLU-IN. Also available in .pdf format
Envirofacts (EPA)
A searchable 'warehouse' of environmental information
Common Sense Initiative
(EPA)
Focuses on industry sectors and environmental processes, and economic vitality
SITE INFO mapping
project (EPA)
You can submit a case study area and retrieve a map of CERCLA and brownfield sites,
with demographic data
Enviro$en$e (EPA)
"Common sense solutions to pollution problems" Business-oriented
information.
Community Based Environmental
Protection (EPA)
Assistance for communities designing environmental protection programs.
Soil screening guidance (EPA)
Pittsburgh Rises
A site evaluation and marketing system
EPA Environmental
Technology Initiative
Under construction - but will have info on technologies for remediation, pollution
prevention, etc.
Environmental Site Assessment Connection
ManTech
Corporation providing assistance for program management, assessment,
and remediation.
E-Tip
A thorough and very useful annotated guide to technical
environmental information and data on the internet
Brownfields Non-Profits Network
Network of nonprofit organizations promoting brownfield redevelopment
Sustainable Conservation
An organization encouraging innovative strategies involving the private sector
The Greenlining Institute
A California-based coalition of businesses and organizations promoting low-income
and minority economic development. See their brownfields policy
statement
Lincoln Institute of Land
Policy
article on brownfields
Hazardous Waste Cleanup Information (CLU-IN) - information about innovative treatment technology for hazardous waste remediation community, for developers, engineers, citizens, etc. (Very good page)
Greenbiz newsletter
"The Hands-On Journal for Environmentally Conscious Companies." Includes
a rated guide to websites, and information on government funding available to businesses.
And last but not least, the unfortunately-named Brownfield Elementary Magnet School
How many brownfields?
There are an estimated 450,000 brownfields in the U.S (GAO). The cost of cleaning up all those sites could be as high as $650 billion, according to GAO estimates. Counting the number of brownfields is problematic - only a fraction are sites reported to the EPA and listed in their database. The rest may be held by property owners who are reluctant to encourage brownfield inventory programs, because of the potential effect on their property values.
Contamination
Brownfield may be contaminated with anything from benzene (highly toxic) to asbestos. Some are contaminated by leaking underground storage tanks, especially on sites that used to be gas stations or use diesel fuel. Many brownfield sites have contaminated groundwater, which is of particular concern to the EPA because groundwater is the major source of urban drinking water.
The standard often used for environmental cleanup is whether a child could safely eat a handful of soil from a site. Many people believe this standard is too strict, especially for sites that will be paved over or are far away from any residential use.
Others believe standards should be kept uniformly strict, because future land use is difficult to predict or control, and because we have imperfect knowledge about contamination.
What are some of the other issues related to brownfields?
urban sprawl
*
wasted infrastructure and assets
*
decreased property values of surrounding property
*
blight of vacant property
*
"midnight dumping" on
abandoned property
*
loss of tax revenue from lost jobs and abandonment or decline in value of contaminated
property
*
cities running out of clean land
Who is writing and thinking about brownfields? All kinds of people - especially real estate journals, law reviews, business magazines, industry journals, and community development newsletters.
There is not much critical literature available, and no comprehensive study of how brownfield redevelopment helps struggling economies or cities.
For some evaluation of different techniques, check out Brownfields, the book by Elizabeth Collaton and Charles Bartsch (listed in bibliography)
Who initiates cleanup?
There are several ways that cleanup of a particular site might be initiated. A private owner may approach a state and ask to participate in the Voluntary Cleanup Program (or similar initiative). The municipality may initiate redevelopment under a brownfield initiative, by approaching a developer and indicating the city's intent to act on a property, which may lead to a public-private partnership to develop the site. The city can "threaten", for example, to sue under the state's Superfund statute.
Finally, the city or state may initiate brownfield redevelopment by seeking eminent domain on the site, or using other acquisition measures, if it feels the site is crucial to the development of the surrounding area.
What should go on the redeveloped site?
This concern is not often addressed, at least in policy formation. These sites are typically still zoned for industrial use, so economic developers focus on bringing in similar firms. This strategy also results from the connection between brownfield redevelopment and job creation - rezoning the sites residential decreases the potential locations for industry. Industrial parks (including eco-industrial parks) commonly targeted for brownfield sites.
An additional concern is the safety of putting non-industrial uses on the site. Even so, some cities have incorporated brownfield sites into recreation areas and tourist parks.
One final consideration: some activists have expressed dismay that residents who live near brownfields are further victimized by placement of manufacturing facilities on cleaned up sites. Some of the sites were inappropriate for industrial use in the first place, and economic developers should keep in mind the overall mix of uses in the community when deciding the type of development to attract.
* * *
This page was created by Sara Hinkley for Planning 261 - Urban & Regional Economic Development. Please see the bibliography for references for the materials contained here. Please send any comments or additional resources you'd like to see on this site.
hinkley@email.unc.edu
this page updated april 15, 1998