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Brownfields: Potential for Urban Revitalization

Brownfields: Potential for Urban Revitalization

#8100091

  EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
  PURPOSE

To help the nation address environmental concerns associated with idled, underutilized or abandoned urban industrial and commercial properties, EPA announced the Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative (Initiative). The overall purpose of the Initiative is to help put urban Brownfield facilities back to sustainable and beneficial reuse.

Using information gathered in the survey phase of this audit, along with input from the Outreach and Special Projects Staff (OSPS), and a written request from the Acting Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response, we developed the following audit objectives: 1) determine whether pilot funds were used for activities authorized under CERCLA §104; 2) determine whether pilot funds have impacted Brownfields redevelopment;

3) determine whether EPA quality assurance requirements were adhered to; and 4) determine whether the terms and conditions governing the revolving loan fund will permit its effective use.

  RESULTS IN BRIEF

Overall, the Initiative has generated considerable attention from cities, states, tribes, other federal agencies, and congressional leaders. EPA has awarded 121 site assessment and 24 revolving loan fund grants to cities and states. EPA has been instrumental in bringing together numerous federal agencies to work cooperatively toward removing barriers to the redevelopment of Brownfields. Our review also showed that cities have been able to leverage millions in private Brownfields investment. The number of Brownfield assessment demonstration pilots as well as the Initiative's budget has grown steadily. Within the next three years, EPA plans to fund a total of 300 assessment demonstration projects. The Agency has accomplished a great deal in a relatively short time. Our report identifies actions the Agency can take to strengthen the Initiative and continue to move the program forward.

A Better Focus Could Lead to More Successful Pilot Projects

The five cities that we visited were using EPA funds to conduct site assessments, develop inventories, conduct community involvement activities, and develop Brownfield work groups and forums. While these activities are authorized under CERCLA §104, we found that some have had relatively little impact on actual redevelopment. We believe there is a need for the Agency to improve the focus of future pilots as well as a need to assist cities in developing technical expertise to continue the Brownfields program after pilot funds have been expended. Maintaining the Brownfields momentum and leveraging private Brownfield investments require successful redevelopments. Because success breeds success, EPA should encourage cities to focus their efforts on those activities which have the greatest potential for promoting rapid site redevelopment. This could be achieved by revising EPA's evaluation criteria used for the selection of pilot projects to focus on those activities designed to bring about timely redevelopment.

Quality Assurance at Brownfield Sites

Because the underlying goal of the Brownfields Initiative is to see facilities put back to sustainable and beneficial reuse, cleanup must be sufficient to protect the health and safety of those that will be occupying the former industrial property. To ensure that environmental data collected as part of a site assessment is of a known quality and that decisions made as a result of the data collected are defendable, EPA developed a planning tool known as the Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP). Two cities in our sample did not develop site-specific QAPPs as required by the National Contingency Plan and Agency policy. Uncertainties as to the amount of quality assurance needed for Brownfield sites led the Agency to form a work group to address this issue. The work group has drafted a Quality Assurance (QA) guidance document for Brownfield site assessments and plans on finalizing it during fiscal year 1998.

Brownfields Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund

City officials indicated that many of the sites that have the greatest potential for redevelopment may not be redeveloped due to the restrictions placed on the use of the funds by CERCLA and the requirements of the National Contingency Plan. Most notably, recipients pointed to the restrictions CERCLA places on using funds to cleanup asbestos, lead based paint, and petroleum. These restrictions, rather than the administrative terms and conditions of EPA's grants, may limit the usefulness of the revolving loan funds.

  RECOMMENDATIONS

We recommend that the Acting Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response:

Agency Response & OIG Evaluation:

The Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response agreed with each of the recommendations in the draft report and provided planned corrective actions as well as milestone dates for completion. The specific corrective actions planned are included after each chapters's recommendations and the response is included in its entirety as Appendix A.

We believe the corrective actions underway and planned by the Agency address the report's recommendations, therefore, we are closing this report upon issuance. No further response by the Agency is necessary.

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