Questions about Brownfields in Jersey

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

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GREAT IDEA GONE BAD? 

Critics say officials, builders cutting corners in rush to rehab
brownfields 

By Alexander Lane
Newhouse News Service (The Jersey Journal)
May 26, 2004

The movement to redevelop old industrial sites, or "brownfields," has
earned widespread praise for its potential to spur toxic cleanups,
revive city neighborhoods and protect undeveloped land. 

Gov. James E. McGreevey has poured hundreds of millions of public
dollars into the effort, backed by a broad coalition that includes
builders, environmentalists and urban advocates. 

But a number of recent deals have starkly demonstrated the possible
downsides of brownfields development. 

Last month came news that McGreevey's administration was considering
warehouse development on a Kearny site so toxic it qualified for the
Superfund list, a plan that has outraged environmentalists. 

That came on the heels of revelations that former Gov. Jim Florio and
some partners cut a deal for a bargain price on a publicly owned
brownfield in Jersey City, prompting other builders to cry political
favoritism. 

And even a much-touted plan to top old trash dumps in the Meadowlands
with golf courses, hotels and homes - which McGreevey broke ground on
last week - has been marred by controversy, with environmentalists and
even state experts raising questions about its safety. 

Such deals have fueled concerns that well-intentioned policies designed
to promote brownfields redevelopment can lead to insufficient cleanups
of contaminated sites, projects that fail to meet urban needs, and deals
tainted by political corruption - with the public helping foot the bill. 

These problems seem to be on the rise nationally, as states try ever
harder to encourage brownfields redevelopment and developers reach for
sites passed over during the first few years of the brownfields movement
because of complex contamination. 

...

for the entire article, see
http://www.nj.com/news/jjournal/index.ssf?/base/news-2/1085562762279420.xml 

-- 


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org

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