Conquering the Brownfields Frontier through the Enhanced Deployment of Environmental Assessment Technologies

Abstract

Communities desperately needing economic revitalization are often not benefiting from the nation’s general prosperity and sustained growth. A culprit in this imbalance is perceived environmental contamination that deters public and private investments in redevelopment. Despite the Clinton administration’s commitment to the economic and environmental revitalization of brownfields (properties whose future use is limited because of real or perceived environmental contamination, and which number over 450,000 in the United States), the rate at which brownfields are returning to productive use is disappointing. Delays stem from uncertainties with regard to the extent and nature of contamination. Accelerated deployment of innovative technology could dramatically increase the quantity of brownfields cleaned up over the next 5 years by providing communities with critical scientific information. This strategy would require the national laboratories working in concert with land grant universities, nonprofits, and the private sector to deploy innovative technologies at the community level.