Site Assessment

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EPA Brownfields Road Map

The Road Map to Understanding Innovative Technology Options for Brownfields Investigation and Cleanup, (EPA, 2001) includes resources to assist in the identification and selection of innovative site characterization and cleanup technologies for site revitalization. The Road Map provides a generally applicable outline of the steps involved in the cleanup of a site slated for revitalization and introduces revitalization stakeholders to the range of innovative technology options and resources available to them. The Road Map provides valuable information to a wide range of stakeholders involved in or affected by the revitalization of sites, whether public projects, private developments, or public-private partnerships including:
  • New and less experienced stakeholders learn about EPA’s brownfields program in general.
  • Decision makers who are familiar with the revitalization programs but are also interested in obtaining more detailed information about technologies. The Road Map provides these users with current and up-to-date information about the applicability of innovative technologies and ready access to the latest resources that can assist them in making their technology decisions.
  • Stakeholders that hire or oversee site cleanup professionals (such as environmental consultants, cleanup contractors, technology vendors, or staff of analytical laboratories). The Road Map provides these stakeholders with a detailed understanding of the different phases of cleanup of a revitalization site and provides information about the role these professionals play in the process and how to encourage consideration of the use of innovative technologies.
  • Regulators by increasing their understanding of the brownfields program and the advantages innovative technologies and approaches may provide throughout the cleanup process. The Road Map also serves as a resource for regulators to provide site owners, service providers, and other stakeholders with useful information about the brownfields program.
  • Community members by providing information about the general cleanup process and guidelines and mechanisms that ensure that they are involved in the decision-making process.
  • Other stakeholders, such as financial institutions and insurance agencies, by providing information for use in assessing and minimizing risk associated with revitalization.
The Road Map is not an official guidance document. Instead, it draws upon EPA’s experience with Superfund sites, corrective action sites under RCRA, and UST sites. Specific conditions-such as the type and extent of contamination, the proposed reuses of the property, the financial resources available, and the level of support from neighboring communities-vary from site to site.
For sites requiring remediation, the seamless combination of remedial activities and the approach used to restore the site to beneficial reuse requires detailed planning to address a variety of considerations. Effective revitalization teams will comprise professionals from a variety of disciplines. Revitalization projects require those involved to consider issues related to the property’s past, present and its future simultaneously. The process involves carefully balancing regulatory and budgetary issues associated with resolving the site’s potential environmental issues against the scheduling and financial issues associated with successful revitalization. The environmental cleanup when appropriate should be interwoven with the planned future use. The aggressive project schedules associated with revitalization projects should be tempered by the requirements for environmental cleanup.
In addition to site environmental issues, there are multiple political and regulatory considerations that may influence the prospects for revitalization of any specific property. The number and importance of these considerations, or any one of them, depends on the type of reuse being considered. Generally, industrial, residential, or large-scaled commercial uses present the most complex matrix of considerations. In addition to the potential contamination of soil and structures on a property, the following environmental concerns and conditions may need to be evaluated:
  • Air quality and transportation congestion
  • Probability of obtaining required permits
  • Water quality (quality of groundwater and surface water, for example, lakes, rivers, estuaries, etc.)
  • Stormwater management
  • Probability of obtaining direct discharge permits and pretreatment costs, if discharge into a public sewerage system is planned
  • Drinking water quality
  • Vapor intrusion from residual subsurface contamination by volatile compounds
  • Wetlands preservation
  • Availability and cost of land filling demolition debris
  • Availability, quality, and cost of water needed for industrial processes
  • Availability and cost of solid waste and hazardous waste disposal
  • Ambient noise and noise standards
The interplay among these environmental conditions and the federal, state, and local regulatory requirements can significantly impact the potential reuses of property. Furthermore, the planned use of the property, whether residential, industrial, or mixed use, all have different requirements and implications on the above environmental conditions.
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