12 January 2002
Source: http://usinfo.state.gov/cgi-bin/washfile/display.pl?p=/products/washfile/latest&f=02011201.tlt&t=/products/washfile/newsitem.shtml


US Department of State
International Information Programs

Washington File
_________________________________

12 January 2002  

Fact Sheet: Brownfields Legislation to Restore Old Industrial Sites

(New law encourages reuse of abandoned manufacturing locations) (890)

The new brownfields legislation, which President Bush signed during a
visit to the Millennium Corporate Center in Pennsylvania on January
11, provides funding and liability protection to encourage the
cleanup, restoration, and reuse of abandoned industrial sites.

The President also proposed extension of tax incentives to further
promote redevelopment and create jobs. The government estimates that
an annual investment of $300 million in tax incentives could "leverage
approximately $3.4 billion in private investment and return 8,000
brownfields to productive use."

The White House fact sheet defines brownfields as "abandoned or
underutilized industrial or commercial properties where redevelopment
is hindered by possible environmental contamination and potential
liability under for parties that purchase or operate these sites."

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates between 500,000 and one
million such brownfields exist in the United States. Today, some 40
states already have active brownfield restoration programs underway.

The Millennium Corporate Center is the 1,000th site redeveloped under
Pennsylvania's Land Recycling Program. The Center is built on the
former site of the Schuylkill Iron Works.

(Note: in the text one billion equals one thousand million)

Following is the text of the White House statement:

(begin fact sheet)

Fact Sheet on Brownfields
Office of the Press Secretary
The White House
January 11, 2002

President Signs Legislation to Clean Environment and Create Jobs

Presidential Action

President Bush today visited the Millennium Corporate Center in
Conshohocken, Pennsylvania to sign bipartisan legislation that will
encourage the cleanup and redevelopment of old industrial properties
cleaning up our environment, creating new jobs and protecting small
businesses from frivolous lawsuits.

The President also announced that his fiscal year (FY) 03 budget
[which begins October 2002] will double the funds available through
the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in FY 02 -- from $98 million
to $200 million -- to help states and communities around the country
clean up and revitalize brownfields sites. This is an example of
budgeting resources for programs that get results.

The Presidents FY 03 budget also includes $25 million in funding for
urban redevelopment and brownfields cleanup through the Department of
Housing and Urban Development.

And, the Presidents budget proposes to permanently extend the
Brownfields Tax Incentive, which encourages the redevelopment of
brownfields. According to government estimates, the $300 million
annual investment in the Brownfields Tax Incentive will leverage
approximately $3.4 billion in private investment and return 8,000
brownfields to productive use.

Background on Presidential Action

Brownfields are abandoned or underutilized industrial or commercial
properties where redevelopment is hindered by possible environmental
contamination and potential liability under Superfund for parties that
purchase or operate these sites.

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that between 500,000 and
one million brownfields tarnish the landscapes of communities across
America, typically in urban areas. Spurring more effective and
efficient cleanup and redevelopment of brownfields will:

-- Remove environmental hazards from communities;
-- Relieve pressure to develop pristine open space and farmland; and
-- Revitalize communities by creating jobs and returning productive
property to local tax rolls.

Located 20 minutes from Philadelphia on the banks of the Schuylkill
River, the Millennium Corporate Center is the 1,000th site redeveloped
under Pennsylvania's Land Recycling Program. The Center is built on
the former site of the Schuylkill Iron Works, and, when completed, it
will be the centerpiece of a 40-acre, $115 million office, recreation
and residential development. More than 500 people already work at the
new development.

Some 40 states have developed voluntary programs that are cleaning up
hundreds of brownfield sites faster and more effectively, and with
less litigation, than under the federal Superfund program. These
programs set high cleanup standards and provide liability protection
under state law for new owners and operators of brownfields sites.

However, these state programs have been hindered by the lack of
liability protection in federal law. Under Superfund, owners and
operators of a contaminated property can be held liable for the cost
of cleanup, regardless of whether they actually caused any of the
contamination. This potential liability creates a strong incentive for
businesses to avoid redeveloping brownfields.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors, in its February 2000 brownfields
survey, Recycling Americas Land, called for a national commitment to
recycle the thousands of brownfields in Americas cities. They
estimated that cleanup and redevelopment of brownfields could generate
$2.4 billion in new tax revenues.

The Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act
reforms the major hindrance to brownfields cleanup -- the federal
Superfund law. The bill provides liability protection for prospective
purchasers, contiguous property owners, and innocent landowners and
authorizes increased funding for state and local programs that assess
and clean up brownfields.

The legislation also provides common sense relief from Superfund
liability for small business owners who sent waste or trash to waste
sites, protecting innocent small businesses while ensuring that
polluted sites continue to be cleaned up by those most responsible for
the contamination.

President Bush called for Superfund reform during his campaign, and
worked to craft a bipartisan solution to the problem of contaminated
and abandoned brownfields. Overcoming years of legislative gridlock on
this common sense issue, Congress approved the bipartisan bill without
opposition in December 2001.

(end fact sheet)

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