Source: https://www.bizneworleans.com
CHALMETTE, LA. — The Regional Planning Commission, in partnership with St. Bernard Economic Development Foundation, was recently awarded a $500,000 Brownfield Assessment Grant from the EPA to support economic development in St. Bernard Parish. These funds can be used to pay for Phase I and Phase II environmental assessments, technical assistance to help facilitate the redevelopment of brownfield sites, and, if necessary, environmental cleanup plans. All work will be performed by qualified environmental professionals under contract with the RPC. Private owners and companies, nonprofit organizations, and public entities are all eligible applicants.
“St. Bernard has always had a rich industrial and cultural identity,” said SBEDF CEO Meaghan McCormack. “But as we look to the future, preserving our environment and redeveloping our brownfield sites into community assets is crucial to sustaining our bucolic parish....”
The wait is over! The premier awards program for brownfields redevelopment is coming to Detroit at the 2023 National Brownfields Training Conference. This year's awards will once again celebrate exemplary projects in brownfields redevelopment from across the country and recognize the people that make them happen. Click this link to review the categories and make your nomination. Nominations are due on April 17, 2023. All winners will be notified in June 2023 and recognized at Brownfields 2023 in Detroit, MI August 8-11, 2023.
On December 15, 2022, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) published a final rule amending the Standards and Practices for All Appropriate Inquiries (“AAI”) to incorporate and adopt the American Society for Testing and Materials (“ASTM”) International’s recent E1527-21 “Standard Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Process.” AAI is the process of evaluating a property's environmental conditions and assessing potential liability for any contamination. Every Phase I environmental site assessment conducted with EPA Brownfields Assessment Grant funds must be conducted in compliance with the AAI Final Rule at 40 CFR Part 312. The AAI Final Rule provides that ASTM International Standard E1527-21 (“Standard Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Process”) and E2247-16 (“Standard Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Process for Forestland or Rural Property”) and E1527-21 (“Standard Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Process”) are consistent with the requirements of the final rule and can be used to satisfy the statutory requirements for conducting AAI. AAI may be conducted in compliance with either of these standards to obtain protection from potential liability under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as an innocent landowner, a contiguous property owner, or a bona fide prospective purchaser.
The updated "AAI Checklist" for EPA Brownfield Grantees can be found HERE.
