EPA accelerates brownfields development

Washington, DC— Stephen L. Johnson, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, was scheduled to announce the All Appropriate Inquiries Rule at this year’s Brownfields Conference in Denver, Colorado, held in November. The new rule establishes clear standards for environmental due diligence that will encourage more urban redevelopment.

The All Appropriate Inquiries Rule is expected to increase private cleanups of brownfield properties while reducing urban sprawl, affecting more than 250,000 commercial real estate transactions nationwide annually. The rule’s process of evaluating a property for potential environmental contamination and assessing potential liability for any contamination at the property increases certainty of Superfund liability protection, and improves information about environmental conditions of properties.

The rule was developed collaboratively with stakeholders representing diverse constituencies such as bankers, environmental interest groups, retailers, environmental justice organizations, and state, tribal and local governments.

Over the last decade the EPA’s brownfields program has attracted more than $7 billion in public and private investments for the cleanup and redevelopment of brownfield properties in cities and towns across the nation, creating more than 33,000 jobs. During this time, more than 7,000 properties have been assessed for environmental contamination.

For information, visit the EPA’s website at www.epa.gov/brownfields.