United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Industrial Properties
Renewed Through Agriculture
Reusing Land to Support Agriculture and Food Systems
Small towns and big cities across the country
have former industrial properties that may
be brownfields, with real or perceived
environmental contamination hindering their
reuse. Some may even have Superfund sites
with more severe contamination issues. EPA's
Brownfields Program tracks more than 860
industrial brownfields, many of which provide
excellent revitalization opportunities due to
being large, flat parcels with good access
to roads, utilities and infrastructure. While
these sites can support a variety of new uses,
renewed interest in sustainability and local food
production has fostered the emergence of new
agriculture approaches.
To meet this demand, industrial brownfields
may serve a wide variety of agriculture-related
reuses: local food production including urban
farms, green or hoop houses, community
supported agriculture (CSA) and farmers
markets; raising chickens and livestock;
growing crops for animal forage; commodity
markets or biomass production for energy
generation; and providing locations for food
manufacture, processing and distribution
centers, as well as food waste and organics
recycling and composting. Before reusing a
brownfield for any of these uses, there may
be important public health considerations as
well as environmental and planning and zoning
considerations.
Courtesy of the Chicago Botanic Garden
Windy City Harvest in Chicago has revitalized
several contaminated sites on Chicago's
west and south sides, including a former dry
cleaning site that now grows organic produce.
Recipe for Reuse:
Important Considerations
Determine if On-site Contamination
is Present: Phase I and II Environmental
Site Assessments should be conducted
to determine whether surface soil and
groundwater contamination is present based
on site history or use of fill that conflicts with
food production or animal crop reuse. While
site contaminants vary based on industrial use,
potential contaminants common at brownfields
include lead, arsenic, zinc, cadmium, copper
and other metals; petroleum and waste oils;
volatile organic compounds (VOCs); pesticides;
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs);
asbestos; and construction and demolition
debris resulting from illegal dumping.
Risk Management/Remediation
Strategies Tailored to Reuse: Risk-
based cleanup goals require different levels
of cleanup based on a property's planned
reuse, exposures related to that reuse and the
estimated risk to human health. For example,
a brownfield property reused as a park will
have more stringent cleanup standards than
a property reused as a warehouse. Because
agricultural reuses are an emerging area,
no single set of risk-based goals exists, and
different goals may apply depending on the
nature and scale of the reuse.
Sites with horticultural production of non-food
crops, biofuels, or industrial composting of
organics or food wastes may be adequately
cleaned to a commercial or industrial reuse,
depending on state or local requirements. In
some instances, such as self-contained growing
systems where vegetation never comes
into contact with the property, soil removal/
remediation might be less of a priority, and
placement of a fresh fill/clean soil cap might
suffice. Conversely, a community garden or
area where people and plants are potentially
exposed to soils during gardening activity may
require more stringent cleanup standards.
Other food system uses may be categorized
differently as well: a farmer's market may
be considered a commercial use, while a
processing or distribution center may be
considered an industrial use. Each situation
would likely require a different level of cleanup,
but in situations where community exposure
may occur and food is grown, communities are
encouraged to use the most stringent standards
available to ensure protection of human health.
Please contact your state voluntary cleanup
program or appropriate regulatory authority to
determine which goals apply.
Industrial brownfields
are properties once used for
manufacturing, warehousing,
or component assembly that
are now vacant or abandoned
due to concerns about real or
perceived contamination.
Before and after: in
Philadelphia, the former site
of a steel galvanizing plant
is now home to Greensgrow
Farm, which provides fresh
produce and plants to area
residents.
Agricultural-related
reuses include urban farms,
green or hoop houses, farmers
markets, growing crops for
animal forage, and other local
food production facilities;
biomass production for energy
generation; and food waste
and organics recycling and
composting.
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Don't Forget to Consider Bioavailability: Factors
such as pH, the presence of other elements in the soil, soil
type, type and form of contaminant, and the type of plants
being grown on the site can all affect how much of the
contaminant may be taken up by the plants; where it may be
stored in the plant; and whether that contaminant remains
in the roots or progresses to the shoots or fruits of the plant
and can be passed on to people eating the products (i.e.,
bioavailability). Soil amendments may reduce bioavailability,
and experts can be consulted to answer questions regarding
amendment efficacy. If the combination of soil type,
contaminant, and plant results in a high bioavailability, that
plant should not be grown for consumption. Work with your
state voluntary cleanup program or appropriate regulatory
authority to determine how bioavailability may affect the level
of cleanup required for the property.
EPA is providing
technical assistance
to Toledo to help
evaluate the
potential for reusing
a former Champion
Spark Plug site
for agricultural
production.
Consider Emerging Food Production
Approaches and Technologies: Depending on the
level and bioavailability of contaminants on-site, emerging
food production approaches and technologies may help
mitigate public health concerns about growing food safely.
These approaches or technologies include raised beds,
above-ground planting beds, hydroponic or aquaponic
systems, and vertical or container-based gardening systems.
While systems such as these completely bypass any potential
exposure pathways from site contamination, all projects
using these technologies should still be vetted with the state
voluntary cleanup program or local health officials to address
environmental and public health concerns.
At the former Rose Township Dump Superfund
site in Michigan, soybean and other crops
are being tested for potential refinement into
renewable fuels such as ethanol and biodiesel.
Sid Wainer & Son
Specialty Foods
Co., a gourmet
foods distributor,
constructed and
now operates
three 3,000 square
foot greenhouses
on the site of
the former Alden
Corrugated Box
factory in New
Bedford, MA's
North End.
Identify Financial Impacts: Developers who choose
agricultural reuses for former industrial sites often take
advantage of federal tax and other financial incentives based
on that reuse option. Converting a site from industrial to an
agricultural use may reduce the tax liability on the property by
50 percent or more, depending on location (and whether state
and local incentives also apply). These properties may also
be subject to lower rates for water and other utilities than sites
with commercial or industrial reuses. Qualifying farm vehicles
may cost less to register with the state. In addition, grants,
loans, and technical assistance are available at the state and
federal levels to support agricultural uses, including sites used
to grow crops for biomass production.
For more information:
EPA: How Does Your Garden Grow?
Brownfields Redevelopment and Local Agriculture
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/success/local_ag.pdf
Lynchburg Grows cleaned up a two-acre former greenhouse
site (a light industrial use) that was contaminated with
lead paint and now operates growing systems in nine
greenhouses covering 40,000 square feet.
Consider Agriculture as an Interim Use:
Interim or short-term uses can help property owners respond
to changing real estate market conditions. An interim
agricultural use, though no replacement for traditional
farming, can demonstrate commitment from property owners
and city leaders to revitalize or revegetate the property,
improve the environmental quality of the site, directly benefit
the community, or generate revenue before a permanent
use is introduced (e.g., residential, commercial, industrial).
Agricultural production of fiber, biofuel crops or horticultural
products can contribute to the green economy, urban
greening, improving soil structure, green infrastructure, water
management and habitat, even on sites where growing food
may be unacceptable due to contamination of surface soils,
groundwater, or proximity to other incompatible uses.
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
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