S TATE P ETROLEUM B ROWNFIELDS E FFORTS Innovative Approaches and Emerging Best Practices Brownfields 2011 Philadelphia, PA April 3 - 5, 2011 Sandra S. Nichols Senior Attorney Environmental Law Institute

Project Objectives Identify gaps and barriers to success Evaluate successful innovative approaches to overcoming them along with emerging best practices Educate state decision- and policy- makers on how to adopt successful strategies

Methodology Analysis of statutes and regulations Review of program structures, funding, and communication strategies Stakeholder interviews ▫ State officials and contractors ▫ NGOs and community organizations

Findings: A Spectrum of Innovative Approaches Innovation and emerging best practices at various programmatic stages Communicate Information Establish Program Frameworks Provide Resources Educate Stakeholders Structure Institutions Harness Legal Tools

Innovative Approaches Establish Program Frameworks Communicate Information Provide Resources Educate Stakeholders Structure Institutions Harness Legal Tools Successful Program Frameworks Planning for area-wide and corridor redevelopment ▫ Florida’s Brownfields Area ▫ New Jersey Brownfield Area Initiative ▫ New York’s Brownfield Opportunity Area Giving Resource Guidance ▫ Wisconsin’s resource guide

Innovative Approaches Successful Communication of Site Information Conducting Site Inventories ▫ Pennsylvania’s Site Search ▫ Indianapolis Site Inventory Tool Establish Program Frameworks Provide Resources Educate Stakeholders Structure Institutions Harness Legal Tools Communicate Information

Innovative Approaches Successful Funding and Technical Assistance Grantmaking Incentives Technical support Establish Program Frameworks Communicate Information Provide Resources Educate Stakeholders Structure Institutions Harness Legal Tools

Innovative Approaches Successful Stakeholder Education Promoting Redevelopment Benefits ▫ Menomonee Valley, Milwaukee Benchmarking Initiative (community environment, economy) ▫ Delaware University analysis of economic impacts (tax revenue, employment, property values) Establish Program Frameworks Communicate Information Provide Resources Educate Stakeholders Structure Institutions Harness Legal Tools

Innovative Approaches Establish Program Collect Info and Communicate Catalyze Assistance Educate Institutional Structure Legal Tools Successful Institutional Structures Integrating all brownfields programs ▫ Wisconsin’s Remediation and Redevelopment Program address all types from cleanup to redevelopment Harmonizing across regulators ▫ New Jersey’s Brownfields Redevelopment Interagency Team Establish Program Frameworks Communicate Information Provide Resources Educate Stakeholders Structure Institutions Harness Legal Tools

Innovative Approaches Effective Legal Tools Liability Protection Florida Insurance Incentives Ohio Institutional Controls UECA-22 States have adopted Establish Program Frameworks Communicate Information Provide Resources Educate Stakeholders Structure Institutions Harness Legal Tools

Innovative Approaches Effective Legal Tools (cont’d) Targeted Foreclosure Authority to hold properties until the redevelopment market is ready ▫ Wisconsin’s transfer of tax- delinquent properties to third party remediators ▫ Land Banking Authority ▫ Genesee County Land Bank Authority. Establish Program Frameworks Communicate Information Provide Resources Educate Stakeholders Structure Institutions Harness Legal Tools

Public Participation/Engagement Opportunities to participate in notice-and-comment procedures Community engagement allows for a more active involvement, at an earlier stage before major decisions have been made Long-term engagement about an entire area/neighborhood is generally more effective than site- specific consultation in response to a certain project

Example: St. Petersburg, FL Six acre brownfields site with petroleum contaminants, located in area with disproportionately high health issues (compared to county and state); Redeveloped by the City of St. Petersburg with funding from an EPA Brownfields Assessment Program grant, Allegany Franciscan Foundation, Community Development Block Grant, US Department of Health and Human Services; Johnnie Ruth-Clarke Health Center relocated and combined with Mercy Hospital – both serve as a community resource; Received the 2005 Phoenix Award from the US EPA

Example: Clearwater, FL Clearwater Brownfields Area = 1,842 acres Abandoned gas station EPA Assessment Grants ($700,000), EPA RLF Grant ($500,000) The Willa Carson Health Resource Center was opened in March 2004; provides free health care to 7,000 patients annually

Example: Paterson, NJ In 1998, community received US EPA Pilot Grant; Community mapped ~200 actual/potential brownfields; Part of the grant was used to create a community advisory committee called the Paterson Environmental Revitalization Committee (PERC); Workshop held in 2007 with ELI, PERC, Paterson Division of Health, Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders; discussions on how to foster community partnerships and collaborations; Resulted in a community garden and a new park.

Spectrum of Public Participation From the International Association for Public Participation:

Information Gathering Ongoing! State Assessments and Comparisons Compilation of Innovative Approaches and Best Practices Educational Campaign

Many Thanks! To the people who help make our work possible: ▫ Adhir Kackar, EPA Office of Smart Growth ▫ Steve McNeely, EPA Office of Underground Storage Tanks ▫ Suzi Ruhl, EPA Office of Environmental Justice And the countless people who take time out of their already full days to inform us…

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