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June 13, 2002 THIS WEEK:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Brownfields Weekly welcomes your organization's press releases, industry conference announcements, and brownfields project updates. Click here to contact the Editors. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Brownfields Legislation Passes the
House WASHINGTON, D.C. (ENS) - The House of Representatives passed legislation June 5 that would promote the cleanup and redevelopment of brownfields - contaminated, abandoned industrial sites. By a unanimous voice vote, the House passed the Brownfields Redevelopment Enhancement Act of 2001 (HR 2941), designed to improve local communities' flexibility in redeveloping brownfields properties. "The purpose of H.R. 2941 is to provide cities with new financing options for brownfields redevelopment," said Representative Gary Miller, the California Republican who drafted the legislation. The bill separates the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) department's Brownfields Economic Development Initiative (BEDI) grants from its Section 108 loan guarantee program. Under current law, in order to access a BEDI grant, cities must first obtain a Section 108 loan guarantee that is secured by its Community Development Block (CDBG) grant. Because CDBG grants are the largest source of federal assistance to state and local governments for community development activities, cities are reluctant to use these funds as loan collateral. As a result, the BEDI grant program has been difficult to access. "This bill is about making government work better for local cities and our environment. By making it easier for cities to access the BEDI grant, we promote the clean up of brownfields and reuse of previously developed sites, as opposed to existing greenspaces," Miller explained. The bill also creates a pilot program for the national redevelopment of brownfields. This pilot program would allow the HUD secretary to develop, maintain and administer a common loan pool. The National Association of Realtors, the National Association of Home Builders and the U.S. Conference of Mayors all support the bill, which must still be considered by the Senate. "I worked with 15 of my colleagues in the House and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to produce a solid bill that will help cities throughout the country. I hope the Senate will take it up quickly," Miller said. "Polluter Pays" Bill Addresses Superfund
Costs WASHINGTON, D.C. - A bipartisan group of senators is cosponsoring a bill to ensure that polluters will continue to pay for cleanup of the nation's most toxic waste sites, known as Superfund sites. U.S. Senators Barbara Boxer, a California Democrat, and Lincoln Chafee, a Rhode Island Republican who is chair and ranking member of the Superfund Subcommittee, unveiled the legislation June 10. The Bush administration announced earlier this year that it would not request a reauthorization of Superfund fees on oil and chemical companies. This fee, established in 1980, provides revenue to the Superfund Trust Fund, which ensured that polluters paid the bulk of Superfund cleanups. As a result of the administration's decision to turn away from the concept of "polluter pays," the lawmakers warn, the trust fund will be depleted by 2004. The Boxer-Chafee bill requires oil and chemical companies to once again pay the Superfund fee. The funds raised by the fee would go toward the Superfund trust fund, guaranteeing the fund's solvency. "One in every four Americans lives within four miles of a Superfund site, putting these individuals at a higher risk of cancer and other diseases," said Senator Boxer. "Sadly, the Bush administration has turned its back on the people of this country and weakened the Superfund program by abandoning polluter pays." "The Superfund program has a long track record of success - 800 sites have been cleaned up already - but there is far more work to be done. This bill will help ensure that cleanups continue, but not at the expense of our nation's communities or the American taxpayer," Boxer said. The Boxer-Chafee bill is co-sponsored by Senators Jim Jeffords, a Vermont Independent, and Democrats Robert Torricelli and Jon Corzine of New Jersey, Joseph Biden of Delaware, Daniel Akaka of Hawaii, Richard Durbin of Illinois, Chris Dodd of Connecticut, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, Bill Nelson of Florida, Hillary Clinton of New York, and Maria Cantwell of Washington. Plan to Attend Greyfields 2002 Greyfields are old, obsolete, and non-profitable retail and commercial sites that appear in cities and suburbs throughout the country. Outclassed by newer, more consumer friendly malls and shopping centers, Greyfields have fallen into disrepair and fail to generate the revenue to justify their continued use. You are cordially invited to the Greyfields 2002: "Community Renewal & Redevelopment Through Adaptive Reuse" to learn from public and private leaders how to develop, design, and enhance urban redevelopment projects through the concepts of mixed use development and adaptive reuse. As state and local governments continue to fight against sprawl and urban degradation, Greyfield redevelopment can be a powerful tool in improving the economic outlook, environmental health, and social quality of your community. For a complete agenda, more information, and registration for Greyfields 2002, please call James Lewis at (703) 519-6270 or email lewis@performanceweb.org. Draft Toronto Plan Views Development
from Sustainability Perspective TORONTO, Ontario, Canada (EcoLog Week) - Environmental restoration and enhancement figure prominently in Toronto's draft Official Plan, presented to the Planning and Transportation Committee last week. The plan sets out an overall vision for the city over the next 30 years, based on the fundamental principle of sustainability. The new plan is intended to protect the vibrancy of Toronto's neighborhoods while directing and managing future growth in strategic areas that can benefit the city the most. Preservation of green spaces, cleanup of brownfields, and promotion of less-polluting transportation modes will be among the key strategies in carrying out the plan. The draft Official Plan is the culmination of a three-year process, which incorporated public input. It reflects the views expressed by many of Toronto's residents, ratepayer groups, neighborhood community associations, business and special interest groups who participated in the earlier consultation process, as well as City Council task forces. This broad-based approach will continue with an additional four-month consultation phase which will begin with initial public meetings on June 10, 11, 12 and 17 at locations across the city. The consultation on the draft plan will conclude with a statutory public meeting in late September. A revised and final Official Plan document will subsequently be presented to the Planning and Transportation Committee and forwarded to City Council in the fall. "Toronto is a great city and we want it to stay that way," said Mayor Mel Lastman. "Where we go from here depends on all of us and I want to hear what Toronto residents have to say about the future of our city." The draft Plan directs future growth to only 25% of the city and focuses on those locations seen as best able to accommodate this growth and benefit Toronto economically, socially and environmentally. It also calls for efforts to improve environmental sustainability in neighborhood districts, through investments in better stormwater management, recycling and composting of household waste, water and energy conservation, and landscape improvements. The plan also focuses on preservation and enhancement of Toronto's distinctive green space system - an interconnected network of parks, ravines, beaches and bluffs winding throughout the city from its northern boundary to the lakeshore. This network offers environmental, social and economic benefits, and the plan calls for action to improve public access, ensure stewardship of the lands and links between them, improve water quality and minimize physical and visual barriers between the city and Lake Ontario. Significant opportunities for growth and development are signalled in what the plan calls "regeneration" areas, where a broad mix of commercial, residential, institutional and light industrial uses could co-exist. Sections of the city designated as such will each differ in terms of their existing condition, character of adjacent areas and opportunities for development. In some cases, the plan notes that extensive infrastructure improvements will be needed; this is where environmental cleanup of contaminated lands for redevelopment, such as on the central waterfront area, could be carried out. Strategies for regeneration areas will be outlined in the secondary plans. The draft Official Plan may be viewed on Toronto's Web site: http://www.city.toronto.on.ca/torontoplan. For International Brownfields news and resources, visit Brownfields.com International Partners: BrownfieldSites in the UK and Europe, and aboutREMEDIATION in Canada. Virginia Brownfields Program Could
See Dramatic Growth RICHMOND, Virginia - The Urban Waste Management & Research Center (UWMRC) film crew spent several days in Virginia recently to document improvements in the brownfields program for the upcoming 10-part video series "Reclaiming America's Cities." Virginia's Department of Environmental Quality (VA DEQ) was instrumental in passing a state brownfields bill this past spring that has already begun fostering interest in urban and rural redevelopment. Projects in communities as different as Hopewell, Richmond and Cape Charles present interesting opportunities to showcase a diverse landscape of redevelopment. While there are many states, especially those in the Northeast, that have many more years experience and more completed projects, film series producer and director Dr. John W. Sutherlin said that Virginia filled a void in the series. Sutherlin said, "Virginia has a program that should thrive. Virginia may represent the best example of the recent states now getting more involved in redevelopment." With the passage of new brownfields legislation, both nationally and in the state, and increased developer activity, Virginia's efforts may become national examples. Clearly, the Eco-Industrial Park in Cape Charles has already generated international interest, but smaller projects in older towns may set trends on another level. "One of the interesting features of the new legislation," remarked Chris Evans, "is the amnesty program to eliminate liability for those wanting to invest in redevelopment." The UWMRC was able to conduct interviews with a host of public officials, Department of Commerce staff, developers, citizens, EPA personnel and elected officers. The film crew will continue conducting interviews along the East Coast for the next two weeks. |