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| Brownfields Weekly |
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November 21, 2001 THIS WEEK:
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Brownfields "State of the State" 2001 Released WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Northeast-Midwest Institute has released an updated end-of-session review of brownfield initiatives and program impacts in the 50 states. The Brownfield "State of the State" 2001 Report presents the activities associated with brownfield cleanup and redevelopment, including information on the number of sites in state programs, innovative financing, regulatory incentives, liability provisions, and institutional controls. Economic benefits resulting from redevelopment, like new businesses, new jobs, and tax revenues, are also included. This report provides a common ground for analysis and comparison while demonstrating the remarkable success many states have already achieved. Read the Brownfield "State of the State" 2001 Report in PDF format at the link below: If you don't have Acrobat Reader, click here to download it free.
Report Seeks New Vision for BLM Lands WASHINGTON, D.C. (ENS) - A new report by two conservation groups concludes that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is failing to protect the long term health of America's public lands and the natural resources they support. The report suggests that programmatic and organizational changes are necessary to correct past mistakes and ensure sustainable future management of the more than 264 million acres of public lands under the agency's stewardship. The report by the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) and Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) sets the bar for performance by the next director of the Bureau of Land Management, a position for which President George W. Bush has nominated Kathleen Clarke. Although it is less well known than other federal land management agencies such as the National Park Service, the BLM manages some of the most diverse and beautiful lands in the United States, including landscapes dominated by extensive grasslands, forests, high mountains, arctic tundra and deserts. Sound management of these lands now requires that the BLM address challenges such as loss of keystone and endangered species, pollution of watersheds, and urban sprawl that were never envisioned when the organization was established 55 years ago. But the agency's structure, budget, operations and culture remain rooted in an earlier era when the government's chief priorities for the public lands were disposal and exploitation. Extractive uses of public lands, such as coal mining, oil and gas drilling, and livestock grazing, continue to dominate the BLM's management of its lands, the report finds. In June 2000, the BLM created the National Landscape Conservation System (NLCS) to help protect some of the nation's most remarkable landscapes. The NLCS includes the agency's national monuments, national conservation areas, and other environmentally sensitive areas. BLM said the purpose of the system is to increase the public's awareness of and appreciation for these public lands, and to focus more management attention and resources on them. In particular, BLM's national conservation areas, most of which have existed for years, will receive greater management attention, as will the BLM managed national monuments created by President Bill Clinton's executive orders. The new report, while criticizing much of the BLM's past management practices, also offers some specific recommendations for strengthening conservation management of public lands in the future, including:
Said Craig D. Thompson, professor of engineering and environmental science and NWF board member. "This report voices the consistent and persistent concerns of millions of public land users and owners who urge the BLM to make sustainability the product and not merely the by word of public resource management."
Register Now for the 2002 RCRA National Meeting For the first time, the 2002 Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) National Meeting will be fully open to the general public. As in previous years, the meeting will be open to staff and management from EPA, state regulatory agencies and tribes. The theme of this year's meeting is "Partnerships for Cleaner Communities." Speakers internal and external to EPA will interact with attendees in a variety of session formats, including plenaries, topic-specific tracks, break-outs and workshops. Topics will include corrective action, Brownfields, permitting, municipal solid waste, non-hazardous industrial and special waste, waste minimization, and federal, state and Tribal Programs. In addition, exhibits of various environmental program initiatives will be on site. Pre-registration is required for meeting attendance. All meeting attendees will be required to present photo identification on site and to wear badges issued by EPA for admittance to meeting sessions. For further information and to pre-register, please visit the meeting web site:
New Study Digs into Reality of Brownfields Policy and Decision-Making WASHINGTON, D.C. - It has been estimated that as many as 650,000 brownfield sites exist in the United States and that the total cost of restoring these sites to productive use may be in excess of $650 billion. Redevelopment of brownfields, it has been argued, is a key factor in halting "urban sprawl" and its adverse social, economic and environmental impacts. A new study released by George Washington University, "Public Policies and Private Decisions Affecting the Redevelopment of Brownfields," addresses four issues concerning brownfields redevlopment in that context:
The report also answers two key questions: Does brownfields redevelopment serve as a check or constraint on urban sprawl; and, What are the critical factors that most influenced specific decisions to redevelop brownfields? Read "Public Policies and Private Decisions Affecting the Redevelopment of Brownfields" at the link below:
State, Fed, Local and Tribal Agencies Succeed Together in Midwest Cleanup The recently completed cleanup at the former Parawax Oil Reclaimer site in Oklahoma City was marked last Friday by federal, state, local and tribal government agencies who were partners in the cleanup. An unusual collaboration of groups that normally might not participate in an environmental cleanup made quick redevelopment of the Parawax site possible. Many contaminated sites are cleaned up only to the level where they don't pose off-site risks to human health or the environment. For example, at an isolated site, cleanup may be considered complete when contamination is capped in place and the site is fenced to prevent access. But in the case of the Parawax site, a coalition of groups came together before the cleanup began to set a different goal. The Parawax Site operated as a reclaimer of oilfield wastes from 1942 until 1997, when the Oklahoma Corporation Commission ordered its closure due to myriad environmental violations. The state of Oklahoma identified the Parawax site as a priority for cleanup. It was then referred to the U.S. EPA for further action. EPA's investigation found 26 above ground storage tanks containing roughly half a million gallons of oil, oily water, and sludge. When the Native American Cultural and Educational Authority (NACEA) expressed an interest in developing the site, the Oklahoma City Planning Commission modified its land use plan. EPA established cleanup levels to support the city and NACEA's goals. This allowed EPA to bring $2.5 million in federal resources to the site, in cooperation with the U.S. Coast Guard's Oil Pollution Act program. The oil waste and more than 25,000 cubic yards of contaminated soils were removed and properly disposed off-site. The site is near Oklahoma City's Bricktown Revitalization area, and overlooking the NACEA's proposed world-class Native American Cultural Center and Museum. Tommy Thompson, Executive Director of the NACEA said, "This site, now healed, will play an important role in the future of the Native American Cultural Center. We hope to bring development in to compliment the tremendous view of the future Cultural Center, downtown Oklahoma City, and Bricktown." |