![[logo] US EPA](http://www.epa.gov/epafiles/images/logo_epaseal.gif){kind=logo}
EPA Region 2 "Clean & Green" Policy
The goal of the Region 2 Clean & Green Policy is to enhance the environmental benefits of federal cleanup programs by promoting technologies and practices that are sustainable. The objectives of Green Remediation are to:
- Protect human health and the environment by achieving remedial action goals
- Support human and ecological use and reuse of remediated land
- Minimize impacts to water quality and water resources
- Reduce air emissions and greenhouse gas production
- Minimize material use and waste production
- Conserve natural resources and energy
This Clean & Green policy applies to:
- Superfund cleanups performed by Potentially Responsible Parties
- Superfund cleanups performed by EPA and/or Army Corps of Engineer contractors
- Superfund cleanups performed by Federal Facilities
- RCRA corrective action cleanups performed under EPA oversight
- Cleanup work implemented through EPA’s Brownfields grant program
The policy establishes a preference for use of:
- 100% use of renewable energy, and energy conservation and efficiency approaches including EnergyStar equipment
- Cleaner fuels and clean diesel technologies and strategies
- Water conservation and efficiency approaches including WaterSense products
- Sustainable site design
- Industrial material reuse or recycling within regulatory requirements
- Recycling applications for materials generated at or removed from the site
- Environmentally Preferable Purchasing
- Greenhouse gas emission reduction technologies
Under this policy, certain green remediation technologies will serve as touchstones for Region 2 response actions:
- Use of 100% of electricity from renewable sources
- Concrete made with Coal Combustion Products (CCP) replacing a portion of traditional cement
- Clean diesel fuels and technologies
- Methane capture at landfill sites
These technologies are the "point of departure" for Superfund cleanups, and will be standard unless a site-specific evaluation demonstrates impracticability or favors an alternative green approach.
Region 2 intends to measure the cost differentials and environmental benefits associated with implementing this Clean & Green policy. Examples include tracking quantities of materials reduced, reused or recycled carbon or greenhouse gas reductions quantities of water conserved or replenished; etc. The Region plans to use existing progress reporting requirements in enforcement instruments, grants and contracts to collect this data.
Region 2 also intends to promote this policy for inclusion in state-authorized and other state-lead cleanup programs.
Click here (1 pg, 438K, PDF) to see a signed copy of this policy.
