Cleanup Enforcement

EPA's Office of Site Remediation Enforcement (OSRE) is currently accepting proposals that identify Superfund and RCRA sites at which the Environmentally Responsible Redevelopment and Reuse (ER3) initiative can be piloted and evaluated. The best candidates are redevelopment projects on property that is:

• Contaminated or formerly contaminated,
• Abandoned, or
• Inactive

ER3 pilot projects must incorporate sustainability principles to ensure that redevelopment minimizes impacts to the natural environment, increases the quality of life of a community, and reduces long-term costs for developers.

ER3 provides enforcement related incentives to developers to "begin with the end in mind" by incorporating sustainable concepts into their cleanup and redevelopment activities consistent with superior environmental performance. As ER3 participants, developers also have easy access to our network of other incentives, resources and assistance.

EPA Search for Pilot Projects
Criteria Used to Select or Identify Potential Sites
So You Think You Have Identified an ER3 Site?
Current ER3 Pilot Projects

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EPA Search for Pilot Projects

On March 1, 2006, Assistant Administrator of the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA), Granta Nakayama, issued the Identification of Superfund Sites and RCRA Facilities for the Environmentally Responsible Redevelopment and Reuse (ER3) Pilot Program memo (PDF) (9 pp, 103 kb), calling upon EPA Regional offices to identify facilities at which the EPA can implement the ER3 initiative.

Any contaminated, abandoned, or inactive site that will undergo redevelopment may be a candidate for an ER3 pilot. In general, EPA is looking for former contaminated, inactive, or abandoned sites where:

1. There is a potential developer
2. Real or perceived liability concerns are hindering the redevelopment of the property
3. The site is at the beginning of the development process and
4. The developer is willing to work with the Agency to incorporate sustainable development concepts into the project.

EPA will also discuss the potential incentives with the applicable state in an effort to help address any concerns about potential state liability and move the pilot project forward.

Examples of potential ER3 candidates and projects that incorporate principles of sustainable development can be found in the ER3 Frequently Asked Questions and Answers (PDF) (6 pp, 77kb).

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Criteria Used to Select or Identify Potential Sites

The built environment has a tremendous impact on the natural environment through the use of materials, waste production, energy and water consumption, and reduction of open space. The ER3 goal is to reduce this impact.

OSRE will accept projects incorporating generally recognized "green" industry or state standards (e.g., LEED, Energy Star, etc.) for sustainable development components such as construction materials and energy efficiency. Otherwise, the developer will need to demonstrate that the proposed sustainable aspect of the project will significantly mitigate the impacts of the development on the natural environment. Other areas a developer could focus on include wildlife habitat restoration or creation of greenspace, use of recycled materials, carpooling and other low impact transportation incentives, and reuse of existing infrastructure. OSRE is willing to consider other proposals as well.

So You Think You Have Identified an ER3 Site?

After you identify a possible site, you should submit the ER3 Sustainability Project at Redevelopment Site proposal form. After you submit the form, a Headquarters ER3 team member will contact you to discuss next steps. Ideally, EPA Headquarters, the regional office, and the developer will have a conference call to discuss

• Possible incentives,
• The developer's plans for the project,
• The timing of the development, and
• Assistance the developer needs with respect to the "green" aspect of the project.

In addition, and if appropriate, information from the form will be shared with the ER3 external partners, who then may offer assistance or provide ideas about sustainable development uses and concepts for the site. If you would like to discuss a potential ER3 project before submitting the form, please contact an ER3 Team member.

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Current ER3 Pilot Projects

Green Hotel, Spa and Condominium Project in Empire Canyon, Park City, Utah
Renewable Energy and Solid Waste Management Plant in Mead, Nebraska

Green Hotel, Spa and Condominium Project in Empire Canyon, Park City, Utah

On April 17, 2007, EPA Administrator Steve Johnson formally announced the first project under the ER3 initiative where an enforcement incentive influenced a developer to significantly minimize the environmental impacts of a planned redevelopment.

The on-site event publicized the Prospective Lessee Agreement (PLA) for this development (PDF) (38 pp, 1,360 KB), which EPA and DV Luxury Resort, LLC (DVLR) negotiated to provide the developer liability relief from certain future enforcement actions by EPA in exchange for DVLR's assistance in completing cleanup actions and commitment to sustainable redevelopment at the site. DVLR agreed to develop a “green” hotel, spa and condominium project on a former contaminated mine site in Empire Canyon, a historic ore mining and processing area located in Park City, Summit County, Utah.

The project, to be known as the Montage Resort & Spa, will incorporate “green” features into the design, construction, and operation of the development to minimize the project's environmental footprint. Sustainability features to be incorporated into the proposed project, such as native vegetation, conservation of open space, use of wind-generated power and a recycling program, are outlined in the Empire Canyon fact sheet (PDF) (2pp, 175KB). This resort will be not only a “healthy building,” but will be built according to smart growth principles, encouraging alternative transit to and from the resort, as well as helping to provide affordable housing for resort workers.

Region 8 Administrator Robbie Roberts, Utah Governor Jon Huntsman, Jr., Park City Mayor Dana Williams, the property owner United Park City Mines, and the developer DVLR also participated in the announcement ceremony.

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Renewable Energy and Solid Waste Management Plant in Mead, Nebraska

As a participant in the ER3 initiative, E3 BioFuels, LLC is able to transform a portion of a former army ammunition manufacturing plant located in Mead, Nebraska into a integrated solid waste management and ethanol manufacturing facility. EPA provided E3 BioFuels with a CERCLA comfort letter (PDF) (5 pp, 336 kb), which subsequently enabled the company to secure a $70 million loan for the construction of the ethanol production facility.

The 880-acre E 3 BioFuels facility is located on a portion of the mulit-1000 acre Superfund Site where large-scale remediation is being performed by the Army Corps of Engineers under an enforcement agreement.

Part of this multi-1000 acre site has been converted to a Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO). The company is in the initial construction stages of a facility that will integrate a solid waste management facility, an ethanol plant, and the existing CAFO into a self-sustaining closed loop system. The operation will convert manure from the existing 30,000 head cattle feedlot into sufficient biogas to eliminate the need for natural gas otherwise required for ethanol manufacture.

E3 BioFuels asserts that this project is an unprecedented combination of sub-systems that will not only produce renewable fuels with little or no fossil fuel inputs, but will also substantially benefit both air and water quality by managing the wastes from the onsite CAFO. Additional information is available from the E3 Biofuels fact sheet (PDF) (2 pp, 303 kb).

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