All News Releases By Date

U.S.EPA ANNOUNCES BROWNFIELDS 98 CONFERENCE IN LOS ANGELES

Release Date: 11/13/1998
Contact Information: Lois Grunwald, U.S. EPA, (415) 744-1588

     (San Francisco) -- Showcasing successful brownfields partnerships will be one of the highlights of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's third annual brownfields conference on November 16 - 18, 1998 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, Los Angeles, Calif.

     "Brownfields partnerships -- so successful these past several years -- continue to be in the forefront of a movement to restore inner city properties so that people, the environment, and the economy benefit," said Felicia Marcus, U.S. EPA's regional administrator.  

     Brownfields  98, "The Basics and Beyond," offers brownfields novices an opportunity to learn the fundamentals and experts a chance to learn about the latest policy initiatives, projected trends, cutting-edge approaches to cleanup and redevelopment, and the newest brownfields technologies and services from experts in the field. It is attracting a wide range of participants, including financiers, community representatives, local government officials, business and real estate investors and environmentalists.

     Brownfields are  abandoned or under-used industrial or commercial areas where redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination. There are an estimated 450,000 brownfields sites across the country. Property owners, lenders, investors and developers are often reluctant to develop these sites for fear that they will be liable for contamination they did not create.

     EPA grants for brownfields pilot projects, which can run up to $200,000 leverage millions of dollars in public and private investments to create jobs, increase the local tax base and provide a cleaner environment and better quality of life for residents. Communities across the nation are benefiting from this environmental and economic redevelopment initiative.

     The brownfields initiative has provided a jump start for 228 brownfields redevelopment pilot projects throughout the nation. With the commitment of stakeholders such as community groups, local residents and agencies, these pilot communities are creating viable, energetic areas where people can live and work.  

     Information on the Brownfields  98 conference can be obtained from EPA's brownfields
home page at: http:// www.epa.gov/brownfields .
                            #  #  #