Brownfjelds Redevelopment tkrougfli Partnerships
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 2
Brownfields Quarterly Community Report
VOLUME 1 NUMBER 1
New York Bond Act
Funds Municipal
Brownfields
Following the passage of the 1996 Clean
Water/Clean Air Bond Act last Novem-
ber, municipalities in New York can now
vie for state funds to investigate and clean
up their local brownfields sites. The Bond
Act included S200 million for Environ-
mental Restoration (or Brownfields) Proj-
ects. The money will be awarded to mu-
nicipalities to pay for up to 75 percent of
the costs of investigating and remediating
municipally-owned brownfields.
In February, the New York State Depart-
ment of Environmental Conservation
(DEC) issued draft guidance for imple-
menting the Environmental Restoration
Program and began accepting applications
for funding. On March 11, Governor
George Pataki announced nine proposed
brownfields projects to be funded with an
appropriation from fiscal 1996-1997. The
nine projects are all proposed site investi-
gations. The DEC expects to finalize the
program guidance later this spring and
promulgate formal regulations thereafter.
It will approve only investigation propos-
als under the guidance. Proposals for
remediation may be submitted but will
have to await formal rules and regulations
for approval.
Inside:
EPA Brownfields Guidance Documents..
Region 2 Pilot Project Summaries	
New York City Organizes Task Force	
Coordinating GIS Efforts	
The DEC already administers a voluntary
cleanup program to promote brownfield
restoration. That program, begun in 1994,
has allowed developers to clean up a site
to standards appropriate to its intended
use in return for a carefully qualified
limitation on future liability. The money
contained in the Bond Act's Municipal
Restoration Program, however, is avail-
able only to municipalities for investigat-
ing and remediating their own properties
of contamination they did not cause.
Municipalities may be reimbursed for up
to 75 percent of their cleanup expenses
and will enjoy a broad release from future
liability for themselves and all future
owners.
Environmental groups successfully lob-
bied to have Bond Act funded environ-
mental restoration projects comply with
state Superfiind standards. If those stan-
dards should change, or if new informa-
tion reveals the need for additional reme-
diation at the site, the DEC bears the re-
sponsibility for funding and contracting
the needed work. Key amendments made
at the end of the legislative session also
strengthened provisions for public partici-
pation in cleanup decisions and legal ac-
cess for injured victims.
The DEC will be selecting sites for fund-
ing according to four criteria outlined in
the Bond Act legislation: a project's
2
.. 4
.. 6
.. 7
SPRING 1997
environmental benefit to the state, its eco-
nomic benefit to the state, the likelihood
of the restored land being used for public
recreation, and whether or not other
funding sources exist for restoring the site.
Having competitively selected a consult-
ant, municipalities applying for grants
must submit detailed plans for investiga-
tion and/or remediation, including a de-
scription of site history, cost estimates and
final planned uses of the site. For reme-
diation projects, municipalities must also
include a Negative Declaration or Find-
ings Statement in accordance with the
State Environmental Quality Review Act.
(continued on Page 3)
A Message from the
Regional Administrator
As part of the U.S. Environmental Pro-
tection Agency's (EPA) Brownfields
Community Support effort, the Region 2
Brownfields Quarterly Community Re-
port (BQCR) is published to inform
those involved in brownfields restoration
about developments in policy, technol-
ogy, planning, and research regarding
brownfields in EPA Region 2. The
BQCR will track progress at national
and regional pilot projects, detail ongo-
ing aspects of the federal Brownfields
Initiative and state programs, and report
on other efforts in brownfields work.
The goal is to share the rapidly increas-
ing knowledge base in brownfields rede-
velopment planning and connect people
doing that work with resources and con-
tacts to help them. ~
fox
Jeanne M. Fox
Regional Administrator
BQCR Vol. 1 No. 1 Spring 1997

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Community Support for
Region 2
When EPA Administrator Carol Browner
unveiled the Brownfields Action Agenda
in January 1995, the Agency set out to
find ways to work together with commu-
nities to reclaim their abandoned or un-
derutilized "brownfields" sites for new
and productive uses. EPA has since em-
barked on a number of efforts toward that
end, providing new guidance which clari-
fies liability issues surrounding brownfield
sites (see list of Brownfields Guidance on
this page) and funding 113 brownfields
pilot projects across the nation. Each
EPA regional office, however, is focusing
its own Brownfields Initiative efforts on
community-level stakeholders and their
needs.
In Region 2, EPA has established a
Brownfields Hotline to provide answers to
questions related to the agency's Brown-
fields Initiative throughout New York,
New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin
Islands. Through the hotline, the public
can access information regarding pilot
projects, application guidelines for pilot
project grants, EPA guidance documents,
and have general questions answered.
w!
, The Brownfields Hotline Number
Is 1-800-225-7044 (outside the
region, dial 212419-7703). The
Hotline, staffed by TRC Environmental
Corporation, operates Monday through
Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mess-
ages may be recorded during other times.
EPA Region 2 is preparing a Brownfields
Guidance Manual to assist communities
and others in assessing, planning, and
implementing brownfields programs. This
document is to serve as a resource for
municipalities as they seek to identify
brownfields and motivate the relevant
stakeholders to initiate brownfields rede-
velopment. The Region 2 office is also
now completing a Brownfields White
Paper which will examine issues such as
capital availability, community participa-
tion, and brownfields reuse. Both docu-
ments will be available this summer and
can be obtained through die hotline.
The Region 2 Brownfields Quarterly
Community Report, of which this is the
inaugural issue, will regularly inform the
interested public on brownfields activities
within the region and developments on the
national level. Region 2 is now establish-
ing a mailing list for this report and its
other brownfields outreach efforts. Those
wishing to be on the list should call the
hotline.
Finally, a Brownfields Website will soon
be on-line, accessible through either the
Region 2 website: http://www.epa.gov/
region02 or EPA's national website:
http://www.epa.gov/swerosps/bf. The
Region 2 Brownfields Quarterly Com-
munity Report will be available through
this website.
Each of these outreach efforts is designed
to inform those at the community level so
they may work to merge local forces for
economic redevelopment with those for
environmental cleanup, with the goal of
putting brownfields back into safe and
productive use. EPA wants to get the
right information to the right parties.
Your ideas and comments on how to im-
prove the agency's brownfields outreach
to this end axe welcome. Please contact
the Region 2 Brownfields Hotline with
your suggestions. ~
isi i,K >\ \I i;k'< >w \I ii i i>-
i,'i h >i k's i diik,vi
As part of its Community Support ef-
forts for the Brownfields Initiative, EPA
Region 2 is considering preparing a
Regional Resource Directory of brown-
fields stakeholders. The Directory
would describe contact information,
services provided, service area, market
sector, number of personnel, and rele-
vant brownfields experience. Stake-
holders would be listed by expertise.
Information for the Directory would be
compiled from a one to two-page com-
pany/organization profile provided by
the interested stakeholders. If you think
the Directory would be usefiil, please
respond through the Region 2 Brown-
fields HotHne at 1-800-225-7044. 0
EPA Brownfields
Guidance Documents
In an attempt to clarify issues surrouniHEj
brownfields redevelopment and thereby
expedite the turnaround of these types of
cleanups, EPA has made the following
guidance materials available through the
Region 2 Brownfields Hotline and the
EPA national website:
GQl Land Use in the CERCLA Remedy
Selection Process Directive
OH Policy Toward Owners of Property
Containing Contaminated Aquifers
GO Guidance on Agreements with
Prospective Purchasers of
Contaminated Property
£3 Model Comfort Letter Clarifying
NPL Listing, Uncontaminated Parcel
Identifications, and CERCLA
Liability Involving Transfers of
Federally Owned Property
GO Policy on CERCLA Enforcement
Against Lenders and Government
Entities that Acquire Property
Involuntarily
GO Underground Storage Tank (Us{
Lender Liability Rule
G<) Community Reinvestment Act
(CRA) Credits Information
CO Brownfields Information Packet Q
EPA National Website
Environmental Protection Agency
National Website
James L. Maas (EPA)
(202)260-8927
Website
swerosps/W
(For more information, see Community
Support article on this page.)
Brownfields Hotline: 1-800-225-7044
BUCK Vol INo.) Spring

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Other Websites of
Interest
I
National Environmental Justice
Advisory Council
Dr. Charles Lee, Chaiiperson
1-800-962-6215
J
ggl
Website: http://www.prcemi.
com:80/nejac/ • also accessi-
ble through the EPA website
NEJAC is the formal advisory committee
convened by the EPA to provide advice
on issues of environmental justice. It
consists of grassroots leaders from im-
pacted communities, environmental jus-
tice scholars and advocates, and represen-
tatives from a broad range of stakeholder
groups including industry, state and local
government, community groups, tribal
organizations, and environmental organi-
zations. Available on their web page is
the full text ofNEJAC's recently released
report, "Environmental Justice, Urban
Revitalization, and Brownfields: The
Search for Authentic Signs of Hope."
New York Bond Act
(continued from Page I)
To date, there is no existing inventory of
brownfield sites in New York State. With
most of the sites which are now slated for
clean up through the State's Inactive Haz-
ardous Waste Site Remediation Program
specifically precluded from using Bond
Act money, die bulk of the municipal res-
toration fiinding is likely to go toward
newly reported sites. Where these sites
are and how many of them will be restored
to productive use is still unknown.
Hie DEC has been conducting a series of
municipal meetings around the state to
outline procedures and policies pertaining
to all of the environmental programs con-
tained within the Bond Act legislation.
The Department has already participated
New Jersey Institute of Technology
Northeast Hazardous Substance
Research Center, Technology Transfer
and Training
William Librizzi, P.E., Director
(201) 596-5846
Website: http://www.nhsrc.
njlt.edu/
The Northeast Hazardous Substance Re-
search Center is an EPA research center
for Regions 1 and 2. The Center has been
working with Region 2 and several mu-
nicipalities to develop the Region 2
Brownfields Guidance Manual and an
expert system decision-making model.
Both documents, which are currently un-
der development, are designed to help
municipal managers undertake brown-
fields redevelopment projects. In addi-
tion, the Center, through EPA's Technical
Outreach Services for Communities
(TOSC) Program, has been working to
provide area communities in need of ur-
ban redevelopment and environmental
justice with technical assistance, education
and assistance in workforce development.
Information regarding these efforts can be
accessed through the research center page.
in numerous municipal association-
sponsored conferences in an effort to edu-
cate municipalities about die programs.
To obtain a copy of the Environmental
Restoration Project guidance contact Dean
Dupuree, Environmental Program Special-
ist with DEC's Division of Environmental
Remediation at (518) 457-5861. ~
EPA Offers Brownfields
Listserver
The Office of Solid Waste and Emergency
Response has established a Brownfields
Listserver to supplement EPA's internet
presence. Like a sophisticated mailing list
service, the listserver will provide sub-
scribers, via e-mail, with direct informa-
tion about Brownfields Initiative events
and activities. The listserver will provide
Institute for Responsible Management
Charles Powers, President
Fran Hoffman, Vice President, Planning
and Research
(908)296-1960
Website:
http://www.instrm.org/
The Institute for Responsible Management
is a private, nonprofit organization which,
through a cooperative agreement with
EPA, is dedicated to providing technical
and other assistance to EPA Pilot Projects
and the states in which the pilots are lo-
cated. Its website currently includes a
"Pilots' Own Database" which provides
information regarding each of the pilot
projects, their progress and resulting
products. Within that database, users can
also find a growing listing of individual
pilot project homepage addresses. IRM's
website also contains information related
to its topical expert dialog sessions.
These telephone conference sessions ad-
dress specific issues related to brownfields
redevelopment. IRM's quarterly newslet-
ter, Brownfields: EPA Pilots News will be
on-line this spring. ~
announcements, press releases, and
newsletters, as well as notices of when
significant new materials become avail-
able on die Brownfields Homepage.
The Brownfields listserver is available to
anyone with an e-mail address. To sub-
scribe, address an internet e-mail message
to: Listsaver@unixmailj4nc.epa.g0v.
Leave the subject line of die e-mail mes-
sage blank, and in the body of the mes-
sage, type the line: subscribe Brownfields
FIRSTNAME LASTNAME, inserting die
first and last name of the person wishing
to subscribe. Send die message.
For assistance with this process, contact:
Jim Maas at e-mail address: MaasJames
@epamail.epa.gov. D
BQCR Vol. 1 No. 1 Spring 1997

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34 New Brownfields
Pilot Projects
Announced
On May 13, Vice President A1 Gore an-
nounced the award of 34 new brownfields
redevelopment pilot projects. In Region
2, grants were awarded to the Puerto Rico
Industrial Development Company, Jersey
City and Perth Amboy, New Jersey, and
Niagara Falls and Elmira, New York.
Each pilot project will receive up to
$200,000 for restoring abandoned indus-
trial sites to new uses. To date, EPA has
awarded 113 pilot projects totaling nearly
$20 million. ~
Region 2
Pilot Project
Summaries
Camden, NJ
4
Camden is the fifth largest and the most
economically distressed cily in New Jer-
sey, with a predominantly minority popu-
lation, a high unemployment rate, and a
one in three poverty rate. Manufacturing
and related land use account for a third of
Camden's nine square miles, and brown-
fields constitute more than half of all in-
dustrial sites in the city. Hie goal of this
pilot project is to develop an effective
strategy for assessment, cleanup, and re-
use of Camden's brownfields. The city
proposes a comprehensive approach that
will integrate technical, community, gov-
ernment, and financial resources.
Contacts:
Alison Devine
U.S. EPA Region 2
(609)757-7665
Newark, NJ
Edward Williams
City of Camden,
Office of the Mayor
(609)757-7214
The goal of this pilot project is to coordi-
nate and employ New Jersey's innovative
legislative and regulatory tools to produce
a pipeline of clean, redeveloped sites
while inventing a model process replica-
ble in other cities. Newark has been des-
ignated a federal Enterprise Community
and an Urban Enterprise Zone. Activities
planned as part of the pilot include com-
pleting a comprehensive GIS-based
brownfields inventoiy; assessing four di-
verse sites; continuing outreach to the
community through the Newark Brown-
fields Working Group; applying innova-
tive site assessment technologies in coop-
eration with the New Jersey Institute of
Technology and Rutgers University; en-
couraging private investment; linking re-
development to revitalization; and produc-
ing a brownfields redevelopment plan.
Contacts:
James Haklar	Joel Freiser
U.S. EPA Region 2 Newark Economic
(212) 637-4414 Development
Corporation
(973) 643-2790
Trenton, NJ
Activities planned as part of this pilot
project include establishing the Brown-
fields Environmental Solutions for Tren-
ton (BEST) Advisory Council to advise
the city on redevelopment issues; identify-
ing and performing site investigations at
key commercial/industrial brownfields
sites; raising public awareness of possible
issues of concern at sites in residential
areas; and evaluating methods and options
for encouraging financial institutions to
invest in key brownfields sites and neigh-
borhoods to prevent "brownlining."
Contacts:
Larry D'Andrea
U.S. EPA Region 2
(212)637-4314
Alan Mallach
City of Trenton,
Department of
Housing and
Development
(609)989-3504
Buffalo, NY
This pilot project grant is funding die Buf-
falo Brownfields Project which includes
inventorying and characterizing the city's
brownfields, and finalizing development
strategies for two to five brownfields re-
development projects based on commu-
nity vision, economic development poten-
tial, andhealth and environmental con-
cerns. This project grant also funds a
Brownfields Community Coordinator to
conduct environmental justice and convj
munity outreach activities targeted to
specific brownfields sites; and is support-
ing a Brownfields Planner to oversee
overall program integrity, work with the
Buffalo Brownfields Task Force, develop
techniques for brownfields development,
and encourage developers interested in
brownfields to assess sites.
Contacts:
Kevin Matheis Michael Kane or
U.S. EPA Region 2 Dennis Sutton
(716) 551-4811 City of Buf&lo,
(ext. 896)	Office for the
Environment
(716) 851-5608
Rochester, NY
Activities planned as part of this pilot
project include selecting four or five pri*
ority sites that are eligible for a revolving
loan/grant program and two publicly-
owned sites for additional environmental
characterization and redevelopment; pre-
paring marketability criteria far brownti
fields site selection; and bringing host
residential communities into the reuse
decision-making process to develop site-
specific property recycling strategies.
Creation of these strategies will rely on
partnerships with current and future site
owners and users, government regulatory
agencies, and development staff.
Contacts:
Maryanne Rosa
U.S. EPA Region 2
(212)637-4407
Mark Gregor
Departments of
Environmental
Services and
Economic
Development
(716)428-5971
BQCR Vol. 1 No. 1

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The goal of thb pilot project is to rede-
velop a 200-aae- industrial area Adjacent
to (he central bosioes-i district and in a
stale Economic Development Zone. In-
novative sice characterization Kchnolcgfes
ceveJoped&tthell.S. Department of
feme's Borne Laboratories will 1* used in
ssstsstnaas of & 17-acw demwetraiiisi
site. A^\&es panned as part of the pilot
include conducting environmental site
assessments and updating a redevelop-
ment plan for the H-acre parcel of the
industrial park, establishing letters of in-
tent with property owners and regulators,
using a BnwnSeids Task Force to involve
the adjacent neighborhoods, and docu-
m siring the process foi replication at
rtfcerbrcwiiftekU.
Contacts;
Daisy Mather	Ronald Conover
U& EPA Region 2 City of Rome,
(2UJ 637-3921 Department of
Planning and
Community
Dewlopmeet
(315) 339-7643
N«w York, N¥
n»go«iof^KHew'Y«ltCitjpilmpfej-
ect is to develop nev» approaches and per-
farmance measures -&&1 svill ac« ;ersl Etwkonm&tial Fro?t-
Aer, be Id cm September IS-21. H?56. Co-
sponsored by the Utibed Statu En". ron-
tneotd Proteclkm Agency (EPA), the
American Bar Asic>c.Btic>nr the Icnua-
tional City/County Management, the Na-
tional Religious Partnership for the Envi-
ronment, and the Mortgage Bankers As-
sociation of America, and hosted by the
City ofPfttsbwgh, the conference pro-
vided a forum for interested parties from
all areas of the public and private sectors
to stew idtss sad learn kom about
bfc**r.l»ld& issues*
Topics coveted in seminars end special
sessions included site assessment, market-
ing, legal liability, financing, ride assess*
meat, axnaumit} is vol Yemeni, cleanup
technologies, cam studies and pu'o-
Kc'private partreraWps, Attendees also
hid the oppommity to view a wide array
tf brownfields rotated exhibits.
EHiotI*ws,theaA»istamAdm!Dijaatof
for die EPA Office of Solid Waste and
Emergency Response, was Master of
Oercfsoafes. Tdct Mmphy, MajtK of
Pitrshirg>F ^elcoc?«3 conference partici-
pants and spoke about Pittsburgh's re~
bint. fit described to ectmctmic strategy
fear tfce eiy's revifciixatica that toctoded
p*rt>Vic sad prr.W partnerships.
Putnerahips was a socarton theme ex-
pressed by several key speakers. Paul
Gormen, Executive Dfct^cftlw Na-
tional Religious Partnership for the
raraieat, tdfcsd about buiidint oust and
relationships across sectors. Commenting
that "It b important to win trust and to
offe tnaV he ii»stmsed coenmanity
(mtoaeafc uvkg'ycopkhair the
rfgbi to knowml tte right ta be
Etamaoe) Clewer, Mayor of Kansas
Cfoy, Missouri ¦ndPresidentofthe H»«
dontfOfflfartiK* ofMayors said
citm should view farowoSttdstsascl-
; {ectknofttseaisfter&tiap&blems,
i T^Mayo*sfctedthffl governments must
t&eifctettaimtiLftes&g pitas and
c arannmity partr. stslnbs if we are to ievi-
la.izs cur urfcu cars conriuioi. James.
Price, Qmr of its BffwwrifieSis Tads.
Fcrce for the American Bar Association,
expressed the need for a common vision,
and the importance cf cooperation, not
confrontation, among stakeholders.
A high Eight of tie canfereoce was the
signals, of a Memorandum of Understands
ing (MDUj by Eliiotlaws and tien Secre-
tary of the Department of Housing and
Urban Development, Henry Cisnens.
The MOU between EPA and HUD is in-
tended to remove barriers and combine
resources for brownfields redevelopment.
Thomas Vcltaggio, Director of Hazardous
Waste Management Division, EPA Re-
gies 3, noted Shm the MOU recognizes the
fact that sustainable development com-
bines economic and entfronmeifal issues,
requires both political and finincial sup-
port, and must be a national priority.
William H. Hansel!, Executive Director of
the International Citv.'Catnty Macaf.»-
ment Association, stressed the Toleoi Id-
eal govemmeni in buiiding coalitions
among sttkefccJdert, sc thai dtizens are
empowered to make effective decutats
abowr browaf^eids.
In a January 30,1997 letter to brownfields
stak<4»4d«5. then Assistant Adninisinstor
Laws stated "Wc nceiwd very positive
feedback or. the conference—tl» dK-srsity
of partkipents anphssizsd the taportance
of the xBinj fcaefs that an pot of bnwa-
fieklscleacjp aadrwJe\7.
pleas# call lladgQmxxfruci, 3PA, Direc*
'Mr of Outreach and Sp«»al ?rojett» staff
at (202) 26MC39 or Xatbertw Dawes c€
Ibe^A Ettnwnfieldi Team at (202)260-
tSH. ~
BOCR Vol 1 No.lSpeliij 1997

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Trenton Communities
Study Brownfields
Founded in 1981 by a group of Princeton
University students and professors, Isles,
Inc. has been creating innovative and ef-
fective community development programs
in the Trenton, New Jersey area for the
past 16 years. Isles seeks sustainable so-
lutions to urban problems involving food,
housing, environmental improvement and
job-training by promoting self-reliance
and community empowerment. Isles pro-
vides a framework for citizens to become
involved and promote change in their
communities through five programs -
Affordable Housing, YouthBuild Job
Training, Community Gardening, Envi-
ronmental Education, and Community and
Brownfields Outreach.
Through the recently formed Community
and Brownfields Outreach program, Isles
works with residents and community
groups in the neighborhoods that surround
four Trenton brownfield sites which are
part of the United States Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA) Brownfields
Pilot program. Through the EPA Brown-
fields Pilot Grant awarded to the City of
Trenton in 1995, Isles provides the com-
munity with current information on the
environmental conditions and proposed
redevelopment of die target brownfield
sites. Isles also facilitates dialogue be-
tween community representatives and
environmental and other decision makers.
On Saturday, January 4,1997 Isles began
its first Leadership Environmental Train-
ing Series (LETS). Funded by the New
Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) and
EPA, LETS trains community residents in
effective leadership techniques and pro-
vides basic information on environmental
issues. Once residents have completed the
series, they can apply this infoimation to
issues in their respective communities.
Isles invited neighborhood leaders of ex-
isting Isles community outreach and
brownfield projects to participate in
LETS. The series began with four ses-
sions focusing on community leadership
techniques and covered several topics
including, but not limited to holding ef-
fective meetings, building successful
working partnerships, and getting to know
stakeholders.
LETS will discuss environmental issues
ranging from information on particular
contaminants, such as lead and asbestos,
to an explanation of the site remediation
process. Paul Speer, Ph.D. of the Rutgers
University Center for Social Community
and Development, John Adgate, Ph.D. of
the Environmental and Occupation Health
Sciences Institute, and Bill Librizzi, Di-
rector of the Technology Application and
Community Assistance Program at NJIT
are participating as instructors in the
LETS program. Participants who success-
fully complete the series will be awarded
three Continuing Unit (CEUs) from Rut-
gers University and the New Jersey Insti-
tute of Technology.
Isles intends to host LETS again in the
Fall of 1997. For more information on
LETS, please contact Juanita Joyner, Di-
rector of Community Outreach at (609)
393-5656 ext. 16.
Residents from throughout Trenton
participate in LETS. ~
Federal Budget
Legislation Amends
CERCLA/RCRA
As part of the Omnibus Consolidated Ap-
propriations Bill for Fiscal Year 1997
signed by President Clinton on September
30,1996, Congress enacted the Asset
Conservation, Lender Liability, and De-
posit Insurance Protection Act of 1996
(the "Act"). The Act includes lender and
fiduciary liability amendments to the
Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act
(CERCLA), amendments to the secured
creditor exemption set forth in Subtitle I
of the Resource Conservation and Recovr
ery Act, and validation of the portion of I
the CERCLA Lender Liability Rule that
addresses involuntary acquisitions by
government entities. The amendments
made by the Act apply to all claims not
finally adjudicated as of September 30,
1996, which include all cases that are in
the process of being settled. For more
information contact Lariy D'Andrea, U.S.
EPA, at (212) 637-4314. ~
New York City
Organizes Task Force
A $200,000 Brownfields Pilot Demon-
stration Grant awarded to New York City
(NYC) last year by the U.S. Environ-
mental Protection Agency added momen-
tum to the City's Brownfields Initiative
and led to the creation of the City's
Brownfields Task Force. Spearheaded by
Annette Barbaccia, Director of the
Mayor's Office of Environmental Coordi-
nation, the Task Force is considered es-
sential to achieve the objective of the
City's two-year Brownfields Initiative -
creating a framework to identify short aifl
long-term measures that will accelerate
the pace and enlarge the scale of clean up
and redevelopment of the City's brown-
fields sites.
The Task Force consists of over 200
members from the private and public sec-
tor and includes representatives from real
estate, community development, environ-
mental protection, law, and city, state and
federal agencies. Functioning as five
working subgroups, the Task Force will
identify innovative solutions to overcome
barriers that currently impede clean up
and redevelopment of brownfields. In
addition, the Task Force will help priori-
tize brownfields issues; develop a com-
puterized geographic database that will
help characterize the universe of brown-
fields sites in the City; assist with baseline
research, review and critique woric pre-
pared; and contribute creative and con-
structive ideas and analysis.
¦
BQCR Vol. 1 No. 1 Spring 1997

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Several reports are expected to be gener-
ated by the Task Force: 1) A Characteri-
zation of the Universe of Brownfields
Sites in New York City, Brownfields In-
ventory and Context, 2) Laws and Regu-
lations, 3) Assessment of Brownfields
Programs/Initiatives Nationwide and
Relevancy to New York City, 4) Insur-
ance/Investment/Market Constraints and
Opportunities, and 5) Examination of Ex-
isting Testing, Sampling and Remediation
Guidelines/Practices.
Data and documentation, gathered in the
baseline research phase for preparing
these reports, will be used to develop cri-
teria by which five demonstration sites
will be selected. As the data are further
analyzed, Task Force discussion and
analysis will benefit from the specific ac-
tivities and information related to the
demonstration sites. In the final phase of
the Task Force's work, recommendations
for dealing with New York City's specific
brownfields challenges will be developed
and tested at the demonstration sites.
The non-profit New York City Partner-
ship, the City's Cooperative Partner, will
assist in coordinating Task Force efforts.
For additional information on the NYC
Task Force, contact Annette Barbaccia,
Director, Office of Environmental Coor-
dination, at (212) 788-2937. ~
Coordinating GIS
Efforts
Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
have become an important tool in munici-
pal planning and environmental remedia-
tion. Brownfields revitalization efforts are
now benefiting from this technology as
well. Developing these computerized
systems, which link infrastructure, real
estate, tax and environmental mapping
data in a digital format, is time consuming
and costly. Project staff could avoid du-
plicate efforts and spend more resources
on actual redevelopment if GIS knowl-
edge could be stand and integrated
In Region 2, several Brownfields Pilot
Projects are engaged in development of a
GIS system. EPA and the states of New
York and New Jersey are also working to
implement GIS for brownfields and other
environmental concerns. EPA and the
BQCR Vol. 1 No. 1 Spring 1997
Northeast Hazardous Substance Research
Center decided to bring this growing body
of GIS knowledge together in order to
enhance brownfields redevelopment ef-
forts throughout Region 2.
On December 4,1996, the City of Newark
and the New Jersey Institute of Technol-
ogy hosted a GIS/Brownfields Workshop.
The goal of the workshop was to encour-
age collaboration and information ex-
change between Brownfields Pilot Proj-
ects and governmental and academic par-
ties dealing with GIS development and
use. Representatives from all seven Re-
gion 2 EPA Pilot Projects, EPA headquar-
ters and New Jersey Department of Envi-
ronmental Protection met and shared their
experience with GIS.
"The idea was to identify opportunities for
better cooperation between all levels of
government," said William Librizzi of the
Northeast Hazardous Substance Research
Center, "to get every-one together, espe-
cially the states and EPA, to identify how
they could be more proactive in making
things happen."
The response of participants was positive,
said Librizzi. Those working on GIS are
now aware of each others' efforts and will
hopefully continue to share their experi-
ence. Although the workshop was not
envisioned as a continuing effort, partici-
pants requested a follow-up meeting, and
one is now being planned. ~
Frequently Asked
Questions from the EPA
Home Page
What are "brownfields?"
Brownfields are abandoned, idled, or
under-used industrial and commercial
facilities where expansion or redevelop-
ment is complicated by real or perceived
environmental contamination.
What is EPA's Brownfields Pilot
Program?
EPA committed to selecting SO states,
cities, towns, counties, and tribes for
brownfields pilots by the end of 1996.
Urn pilots, each funded at up to $200,000
overtwoyears, will test redevelopment
models, direct special efforts toward re-
moving regulatory barriers without sacri-
ficing protectiveness, and facilitate coor-
dinated public and private efforts at the
federal, state, and local levels. Experi-
ence gained from the pilots will provide a
growing knowledge base to help EPA
direct the Brownfields Initiative.
Brownfields pilots typically address
dozens of contaminated sites. Why is
EPA granting only $200,000 to each
pilot project?
The $200,000pilot awards are to be used
for site assessment and related activities -
- not cleanups. The majority of brown-
fields pose significantly less threat to hu-
man health and the environment than
most sites being addressed under Super-
fund. Brownfields pilot recipients are
using the pilot funds to create and en-
hance local capability to assess properties
with economic development potential.
Once the level of contamination at these
properties is determined, cleanup costs
become elements of a redevelopment
transaction. Pilot recipients are experi-
menting with a range of processes for
encouraging states, local governments,
developers, and communities to work to-
gether in brownfields cleanup. EPA
hopes that environmental cleanup will be
viewed as an integral step in the redevel-
opment process.
Has EPA established criteria for evalu-
ating the success of the brownfields
pilot program?
Evaluating the success of the pilot proj-
ects was a key topic at the Browrfields
Pilots National Workshop in February,
1996. EPA is using this information to
determine how to establish a useful pilot
evaluation system. Through a coopera-
tive agreement with EPA, the Institute for
Responsible Management is working di-
rectly with eachpibtto implement
evaluation criteria Also, the brownfields
application requires applicants to identify
measures of success for their proposed
pilots. O

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