[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 223 (Monday, November 21, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-28706]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: November 21, 1994]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-5110-5]

 

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability 
Act (CERCLA) or Superfund, Section 104; Announcement of Competition for 
Final Five Brownfield Economic Redevelopment Initiative Pilots

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency will begin accepting 
proposals for Brownfield Economic Redevelopment Pilots beginning 
December 1, 1994. The application period will close March 1, 1995, and 
the Agency intends to competitively select five Pilots by June 1, 1995.

DATES: This action is effective as of December 1, 1994, and expires on 
March 1, 1995. All proposals must be received and/or post marked by the 
expiration date cited above.

ADDRESSES: Application booklets can be obtained by calling the 
Superfund Hotline at 800-424-9346, or writing to: U.S. EPA--Brownfield 
Application, Superfund Document Center 5201G, 401 M Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20460.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The Superfund Hotline, 800-424-9346.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Brownfield Economic Redevelopment 
Initiative is founded on the belief that ``economic development and 
environmental protection must go hand in hand,'' (Carol Browner, 
Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency, Announcing the 
Cleveland Brownfields Pilot on November 8, 1993). EPA's Brownfields 
Initiative is an organized commitment to help communities revitalize 
abandoned contaminated properties, and to thereby eliminate potential 
health risks and restore economic vitality to areas where these 
properties exist. Three national pilot projects already have been 
awarded.
    With as many as 100,000 sites potentially requiring evaluation 
under federal or state Superfund programs, hundreds of local, state, 
and tribal governments and their citizens inevitably will have to deal 
with contaminated properties.
    The ``polluter pays'' principle, fundamental to Superfund's success 
in deterring the creation of new contaminated sites, has caused public 
and private investors to shy away from buying and cleaning up land 
which may be contaminated.
    Fear of that liability drives investors toward undeveloped 
``greenfields.'' The result can be a diminished supply of pristine land 
and economic decline in industrial and urban centers. Both are 
detrimental to communities.
    EPA's Brownfields Pilots (to be funded at $200,000 each over two 
years) will test redevelopment models, direct special efforts toward 
removing regulatory barriers without sacrificing protectiveness, and 
facilitate coordinated efforts at the federal, state, and local levels. 
EPA will develop a coordinated federal strategy to help initiate a 
significant national effort to clean up and redevelop brownfields.
    The objectives of the initiative are: to build the capacity of 
affected and interested parties to shape how contaminated sites are 
cleaned up and productively reused; to stimulate a national search for 
innovative ways to overcome the current obstacles to the reuse of 
contaminated properties; and to coalesce federal, state, and municipal 
efforts to examine new approaches to achieving cleanup and reuse; and 
to explore the potential for combining an economic stimulus and a 
speeded-up environmental cleanup to contribute to achieving 
environmental justice.
    Cities, counties, towns, states, and Native American tribes are all 
eligible to apply.
    Proposals will be evaluated on the following Criteria (a more 
detailed and complete set of criteria will be included in the 
application booklet):
     Demonstrated commitment of public and private leadership 
to brownfields redevelopment.
     Plans for effective community involvement.
     Clear delineation of how federal support will make a 
difference.
     Potential for national replication.
     Government support and technical, legal, and political 
capacity to complete goals.
     Clearly outlined potential sources of cleanup funding.
     Contributions to environmental justice goals.
     Well-defined approach to environmental assessment.

    Dated: November 15, 1994.
Timothy Fields, Jr.,
Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency 
Response.
[FR Doc. 94-28706 Filed 11-18-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-M