Comprehensive Regional Plan - Northwestern Indiana Regional ...

2040 CRP Summary / Environment and Green Infrastructure
BROWNFIELDS
58
CLEAN UP BROWNFIELDS
Over the years, pollution-creating industries and
businesses have taken a toll on our environment in
Northwest Indiana. When they depart from a location,
they leave behind a potentially contaminated footprint and
thus create a “brownfield.” These sites vary in the level
of pollution present, and there are a number of cleanup,
or remediation, standards that govern these programs.
Some sites may involve only minor remediation, and
costs are minimized and new uses initiated. Other sites
can be classified as full-blown “Superfund” sites by the
EPA, which indicate the worst hazardous waste sites in
the U.S. Superfund sites pose an enormous challenge for
remediation, and they are primarily located in low-income,
urbanized areas. Even the sites that are not contaminated
gain a brownfield “stigma” by mere proximity to
others. The existence of these sites not only hampers a
community’s economic outlook, it also severely affects its
overall well-being.
It is critical to promote programs that aid in the
remediation of brownfield sites to protect our
environmental and economic health.
Many sites in our region today have been successfully
cleaned up and restored back to productive use, however
many more locations remain. A number of programs
exist to help restore brownfields and address the array of
complex issues that are associated with these processes.
These programs exist on the state and federal level and
will need to be employed vigorously in order to revitalize
our region for future infill growth in our established urban
areas.