United States Solid Waste EPA500-F-01-327
Environmental and Emergency August 2001
Protection Agency Response (5101) www.epa.gov/brownfields
Washington, D.C. 20460
vvEPA RCRA Brownfields
Prevention Pilots
Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5105) Quick Reference Fact Sheet
EPA's Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative is designed to empowerstates, communities, and
other stakeholders in economic redevelopment to work together in a timely mannerto prevent, assess,
safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield is a site, or portion thereof, that has
actual or perceived contamination and an active potential for redevelopment or reuse. EPA is funding:
assessment demonstration pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years, with additional
funding provided for greenspace) to assess brownfields sites and to test assessment models and
facilitate coordinated assessment and cleanup efforts at the federal, state, tribal, and local levels; job
training pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 overtwo years) to provide training for residents of
communities affected by brownfields to facilitate cleanup of brownfields sites and prepare trainees for
future employment in the environmental field; and cleanup revolving loan fund pilot programs (each
funded up to $1,000,000 overfive years) to provide financial assistance for the environmental cleanup
of brownfields. These pilot programs are intended to provide EPA, states, tribes, municipalities, and
communities with useful information and strategies as they continue to seek new methods to promote
a unified approach to site assessment, environmental cleanup, and redevelopment.
Since March 2000, EPA has been launching unfunded RCRA Brownfields Prevention pilot projects to
showcase the flexibility in RCRA, and in particular, some of the concepts embodied in RCRA Cleanup
Reforms. The goal of this effort is to showcase successes that can help other communities in modeling
future innovations for cleanup and redevelopment at RCRAsites. Although these pilots will emphasize
flexibility, EPA and the states will continue to ensure protection of human health and the environment.
Note: The discussion of each pilot in this fact sheet is based on information and the opinion
expressed in the pilot applications. It should be noted that EPA will determine, in consultation
with the appropriate stakeholders for each pilot, the final goals and contours of each pilot as the
workplan is developed.
Safety-Kleen: Muskegon Heights, Michigan action. At the present time, the risks to human
health and the environment posed by the site are
The Safety-Kleen facility in Muskegon Heights, unknown. The proposed goals of the Pilot are to
Michigan, has been selected as a RCRA develop a corrective action strategy between
Brownfields Prevention Pilot. The City of federal, state, and local stakeholders; negotiate
Muskegon Heights operated a municipal a consent agreement for corrective action
wastewater treatment plant for 50 years at the site implementation; and obtain a comfort letter
until it was leased in 1974 to a hazardous waste from EPA to help resolve purchaser liability
treatment company that treated electroplating concerns. Michigan is a RCRA-authorized state
wastes. The original lessee has been acquired by and has designated a staff person to serve on a
a series of other companies, the latest being RCRA Brownfields Prevention Pilot oversight
Safety-Kleen. Michigan DEQ issued a closure team. This project will provide one of the first
certification for active units in August 1995, but opportunities to apply the voluntary corrective
the site is a low priority for State corrective action concepts in the Memorandum of
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Understanding (MOU) between Region 5 and the
State of Michigan. Another proposed goal is to
create a model for other owners and operators of
RCRA facilities on how to voluntarily pursue
corrective action.
The city has been approached by a developer to
purchase the property and construct residential
homes and a recreation area. The proposed
housing and recreational area are needed to attract
middle income families back to this urban
community, where the unemployment rate is 10%
and the poverty rate is 33%. The city fully
supports the redevelopment proposal, and
resources for demolition will be leveraged from
the state.
SafetyKleen RCRA Brownfields Pilot Contacts:
Melvin Burns, II, Muskegon Heights City
Manager—(231) 733-1175
Ann Wentz, EPA Region 5—(312) 886-8097
BP Refinery: Wood River, Illinois
The BP Refinery (formerly BP Amoco Refinery)
in Wood River, Illinois, has been selected as a
RCRA Brownfields Prevention Pilot. Standard Oil
began refining operations on this 600-acre site in
1907. The city has grown around the refinery site,
and the downtown business district and residential
neighborhoods now surround the site. Since the
refinery's closure and dismantling in 1993, the
city has lost over $20 million in assessed value of
the property. Two RCRA permits cover the Main
Plant area and the Riverfront Property area.
The proposed goal of the Pilot is to develop a
cleanup corrective action strategy among federal,
state, and local stakeholders. Another goal
proposed by the city is to focus on RCRA cleanup
and redevelopment of two areas encompassing
more than 50 acres located adjacent to the
downtown. The city has secured a developer to
redevelop these two areas for potential
commercial use. In addition, the city proposes
involving the community in decisions relating to
cleanup goals and future-use planning.
The city believes that many environmental
benefits can be attained with the Pilot: an
expedited investigation and cleanup of the site;
discouraging sprawl by reusing a viable
property with existing infrastructure; and
developing long-term mechanisms for
monitoring institutional controls. The Pilot will
test the implementation of the Memorandum of
Understanding between Region 5 and the State
of Illinois. The Pilot can be a model for small
communities dealing with RCRA corrective
actions. The Wood River has been designated
an American Heritage River, and the city has
been designated a state Enterprise Zone.
BP Refinery RCRA Brownfields Pilot
Contacts:
Stacy Pate, Director of Administration, City of
Wood River—(618) 251 -3100
Ann Wentz, EPA Region 5—(312) 886-8097
Union Carbide Can be: Infrastructure Financing
Authority, Puerto Rico
The Union Carbide Caribe, Inc. (UCCI) facility
in Punta Guayanilla, Puerto Rico, has been
selected as a RCRA Brownfields Prevention
Pilot. The UCCI facility ceased active
processing operations in 1985, but continues to
be used for bulk storage of petroleum. A RCRA
Part B permit was issued in 1988, and a renewal
application is in the final stages of agency
review. Thirty-six Solid Waste Management
Units (SWMUs) primarily used for the disposal
of operational wastes and dredged materials
have been identified at the facility.
Guayanilla Bay has been identified by the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Government as
a potential site for a deep-draft container
transshipment port. According to the Autoridad
para el Financiamiento de la Infraestructura de
Puerto Rico, also known as the Infrastructure
Financial Authority (API), the UCCI property
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August 2001
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has a great potential for construction of port-
related facilities. Unemployment in the area is
over 25% and the poverty rate is nearly 66%.
Development of the port has the potential to
contribute greatly to the Puerto Rican economy
and create 5,000 new jobs. API believes that
development will be facilitated if all RCRA issues
have been resolved.
The proposed goals of the Pilot are to finalize a
site acquisition plan, overlay the port design onto
the existing RCRA permit, determine the fate of
each SWMU, structure an Environmental
Management System (EMS) for the port, and
negotiate a RCRA prospective purchaser
agreement. API intends to make an EMS-ISO
14000 a requirement for the port developer and
future occupants to promote operations that are
protective of the environment. API will establish
an Advisory Committee composed of all
stakeholder groups, including residents, to assist
in decision making. API has obtained the support
of the Puerto Rican government, several
community and environmental groups in the
Guayanilla area, and the facility. API plans to
investigate the potential for setting aside a marine
conservation zone to protect existing habitats.
Due to the potential for constructing port facilities
at this property, the project is expected to provide
a strong economic incentive for fostering the
remediation and reuse of other properties in the
area.
UCCIRCRA Brownfields Pilot Contacts:
Ramon Amador, API—(787) 763-5757
Michael Poetzsch, EPA Region 2—(212) 637-
4147
Milt Adams: Commerce City, Colorado
Region and others have not identified assets of
the owner in addition to the property. Therefore,
it appears the corporation lacks the financial
ability to complete the cleanup. Operations at
the site began in the early 1970s and ended in
1998. A CERCLA Preliminary Assessment/Site
Investigation was conducted in 1997, which
confirmed that soils are contaminated with
petroleum hydrocarbons and other organic
contaminants.
Some remediation work has been done at the
site, such as removal of some underground
tanks, but there are no funds available to do
more. A number of Potentially Responsible
Parties (PRPs) under CERCLA have been
identified. One has offered to participate in the
completion of site cleanup and is willing to help
develop a creative process for getting results.
Counsel for the owner also has agreed to
continue helping to move remedial efforts
forward. In July 1999, the State of Colorado
returned direct implementation for the site to
EPA. EPA issued a limited scope RCRA 7003
order in 1999 that addressed site security.
The proposed goals of the Pilot are to initiate an
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) process,
conclude the site investigation, and scope out
remedial requirements and long-term
institutional controls. The ADR is proposed to
establish RCRA and CERCLA environmental
cleanup goals in light of redevelopment plans,
and identify the financial sources to support the
site cleanup. This approach is supported by the
PRPs, EPA, the state, the city, and the facility.
Another proposed goal is to develop an
approach that can serve as a model for other
RCRA cleanups with bankrupt owners.
The Milt Adams, Inc. facility in Commerce City, Developers have expressed interest in the site.
Colorado, is a bankrupt used oil recycling facility. Rail and road access are good, and the site
Counsel for the owner asserts that the corporation probably would be redeveloped quickly after
has been dissolved and that the property is the cleanup. Redevelopment will improve the city's
only asset. Preliminary investigations by the tax base and appearance. Of the 8,800 residents
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living within one mile of the site, 38% are
minority and 20% live in poverty.
Milt Adams RCRA Brownfields Pilot Contacts:
Irish Layton, Deputy City Manager, Commerce
City—(303) 289-3629
Jason Melfi, Economic Development
Coordinator— (303) 289-3719
Carl Daly, EPA Region 8—(303) 312-6416
working with a Citizen Advisory Panel
concerned about the site, several conservation
groups concerned about wetlands abutting the
site, and local government officials.
P&URCRA Brownfields Pilot Contacts:
Randy Senger, P & U Company—(616) 833-
5341
Bob O'Meara, EPA Region 1—(617) 918-1360
Pharmacia & Upjohn: North Haven, Connecticut Summary of the Proposed Pilot Innovations
The Pharmacia & Upjohn Company (P&U)
facility in North Haven, Connecticut, has been
selected as a RCRA Brownfields Prevention Pilot.
Specialty chemicals were manufactured at the 78-
acre P&U site beginning in the 1940s. The site
abuts the Quinnipiac River and its associated
wetlands. Manufacturing at the site ceased in
December 1993. EPA issued a RCRA 3013
Administrative Order in 1989, and 28 areas of
environmental concern subsequently have been
identified. EPA issued a RCRA 3008(h)
Administrative Order in 1994.
A number of interim measures have been
implemented at the facility, including installation
of a storm-water containment system, installation
of a groundwater recovery and biological
treatment system, dredging of Quinnipiac River
sediments, decontamination and removal of
above-ground structures, and site security. A
streamlined risk evaluation (SLRE) recently
approved by EPA provides the basis for
determining cleanup objectives for the site.
The proposed goal of the Pilot is to enhance
stakeholder input on reuse of the site and use the
input in the Corrective Measures Study (CMS)
phase of the site corrective action. Stakeholder
input on local zoning requirements, current
wetlands designation, habitat, and public access
will be pursued. The plan is to seek public
involvement much earlier in the corrective action
process than is typically required. P&U is
Safety Kleen and Muskegon Heights:
• Test MOU with the State of Michigan.
• Leverage dollars from the State for
demolition.
BP and Wood River:
• Test the MOU with the State of Illinois.
Serve as a model for ecological restoration.
• Foster RCRA cleanup and future reuse and
redevelopment of the property.
UCCI-Puerto Rico Infrastructure Financing
Authority:
• Create a model RCRA Prospective
Purchaser Agreement.
• Establish a stakeholder Advisory
Committee.
Carve out a parcel of the site to foster quick
redevelopment.
• Test the use of an EMS which is ISO 14000
compliant as a tool that fosters good
environmental stewardship of the property
by developers and owners/operators at the
site.
• Showcase management of SWMUs in a
manner that will allow them to be addressed
under a new owner who will redevelop the
site.
Milt Adams, Inc. and Commerce City:
Create a model for dealing with bankrupt
sites.
• Use multiple authorities under RCRA and
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August 2001
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CERCLA.
Showcase an ADR process to arrive at a
cleanup agreement between the owner and
other PRPs.
Pharmacia & Upjohn Company and North
Haven:
• Showcase enhanced measures for connecting
communities to RCRA cleanups and future
uses of the site.
• Showcase front-end public involvement in the
corrective action process.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
For more information on EPA's Corrective Action
Reforms, please visit the RCRA corrective action
web site at http://www.epa.gov/correctiveaction.
For more information about the RCRA
Brownfields Initiative pilots and other
brownfields program initiatives please visit the
brownfields program web site at
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields.
RCRA Brownfields Brownfields Prevention Initiative Pilot Fact Sheet
August 2001 EPA 500-F-01-327
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