A tale of three Brownfields

Conference · Tue Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1996

OSTI ID:488841

Sweet, F R; Worthington, M A; Belli, E; Hollands, G G; Lamoureux, S M; Kresge, M W; McMenemy, A B; Morse, C A ^[1]

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1. Fugro East, Inc., Northborough, MA (United States)

Contaminated site remediation and reuse, or Brownfield redevelopment, has become an increasingly important approach to site development in the northeast corridor, yet the scale of this activity is but a fraction of its full potential. The problem lies in the multi-jurisdictional quagmire that confronts a Brownfield project. Permitting such projects is an overly taxing dynamic process that has become a staple diet for adept multidisciplinary consulting firms. Limited government sanctions such as clean sites initiatives and economic revitalization zones are at best, when successful, interesting bench studies. The central hypothesis that, if regulations are streamlined then site reuse will occur, is sound. Yet streamlining brings concerns that the protection of public health and the environment will be compromised and that the result will be a lower standard of public protection for urban populations. The authors postulate that the permitting of Brownfield projects can be streamlined without creating a double standard of risk tolerance. The authors present evidence of this by comparing publicly and privately funded projects.

• OSTI ID: 488841
• Report Number(s): CONF-9610152--
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
FINANCING
LAND RECLAMATION
LICENSING
REMEDIAL ACTION
RISK ASSESSMENT
SITE CHARACTERIZATION
SOILS