Brownfields Assessment Pilot Fact Sheet

OVERVIEW

EPA has selected Bucks County as a Brownfields Pilot. Since mid-century, the economic vitality of Bucks County has centered around a manufacturing industrial base located along the Delaware River. The loss of 10,000 jobs at U.S. Steel and industrial downsizing over the past two decades have resulted in the county's high unemployment rate. There are more than three square miles of vacant industrial facilities, under-used buildings, and abandoned properties in the county. Bucks County secured an Enterprise Zone designation from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1996. Three of the municipalities in this Enterprise Zone are among the county's most populous. County Commissioners are trying to facilitate the revitalization of older, abandoned, and under-used buildings within Bucks County, particularly within these Enterprise Zone communities. Businesses that want to locate in the county tend to avoid brownfields and their suspected contamination despite accessibility to a large, high-quality workforce and an established transportation network. Instead, businesses often elect to locate in undeveloped parts of the county, which has exacerbated urban decay and suburban sprawl.

OBJECTIVES

The objective of this brownfields pilot is to initiate a comprehensive assessment of potentially contaminated industrial and commercial properties that would be appropriate for private sector investment. The pilot will focus on brownfields within three Enterprise Zone communities-Bristol Township, Bristol Borough, and Morrisville Borough.

ACTIVITIES

Activities planned as part of this pilot include:

Phase 1: Coordination with Enterprise Zone Plan

• Forming a Brownfields Task Group;

• Establishing goals for designated brownfields communities, and identifying the unique cultural, social, historical, and environmental aspects of the communities;

• Ensuring community participation and outreach;

• Reviewing available databases and surveys to identify brownfields sites, and creating an inventory of brownfields sites;

• Creating a matrix of ranking criteria, and prioritizing sites for environmental assessment;

• Preparing site assessment work plans for sites, and conducting site assessments;

• Preparing site assessment reports;

• Evaluating appropriate flow of ownership models for site redevelopment and reuse; and

• Presenting recommendations to community leaders.

The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.

CONTACTS:

Robert White
Bucks County Redevelopment Authority
(215) 860-3313

Tom Stolle
U.S. EPA - Region 3
(215) 566-3129
stolle.tom@epamail.epa.gov

Visit the EPA Brownfields web site at: http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/