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Brownfields Program
Introduction
Brownfields are underutilized properties where reuse is hindered by the actual or suspected presence of pollution or contamination. Cleanup and redevelopment of these sites benefit the environment and communities by eliminating pollution and contamination problems, allowing economic growth, and revitalizing neighborhoods. Urban infill brownfield redevelopment in neighborhoods with existing public infrastructure eliminates neighborhood blight, and improves a community’s image and long term sustainability. Infill development also increases property values, jobs, local tax revenues and improves public health.
The goals of the Water Boards’ Brownfield Program are to:
- Expedite and facilitate site cleanups and closures for Brownfields sites to support reuse of those sites
- Preserve open space and greenfields
- Protect groundwater and surface water resources, safeguard public health, and promote environmental justice
- Streamline site assessment, clean up, monitoring, and closure requirements and procedures within the various Water Board site cleanup program
Contact List
These Regional Board staff can answer your questions concerning local Brownfield sites and issues within their particular Region
Water Board Cleanup Programs
Site clean up responsibilities for brownfields primarily reside within four main programs at the Water Board: the Underground Storage Tank Program, the Site Cleanup Program, the Department of Defense Program and the Land Disposal Program. These Water Board cleanup programs are charged with ensuring sites are remediated to protect the State of California’s surface and groundwater and return it to beneficial use.
- Underground Storage Tank Program
The purpose of the Underground Storage Tank Program is to protect public health and safety and the environment from releases of petroleum and other hazardous substances from underground storage tanks. The four elements of the program include:
- Leak Prevention
The State Water Board established regulations governing prevention of leaks from underground storage tanks.
- Cleanup
If an underground storage tank leak occurs, the owner or operator (Responsible Party) must report the leak to the local regulatory agency, and remediate the resultant soil and/or groundwater pollution. - Enforcement
The State Water Board created the Underground Storage Tank (UST) Enforcement Unit to support both the leak prevention and cleanup responsibilities of the UST program by investigating fraud and violations of the UST laws and regulations.
- Tank Tester Licensing
The State Water Board administers the Tank Tester Licensing Program to protect human health and the environment by establishing minimum qualifications for those who test underground storage tanks and associated piping.
- Leak Prevention
- Site Cleanup Program (SCP) - The Site Cleanup Program, formerly called the Spills, Leaks, Investigation, Cleanup (SLIC) program, oversees the investigations and remediation of current or historic unauthorized discharges to soil, groundwater and surface water at non-federal sites. These releases are generally not from petroleum underground storage tanks. The program provides oversight at these sites and requires that responsible parties implement site investigations, source removals, soil and groundwater treatment and monitoring.
- Department of Defense (DoD) Program
The Department of Defense Program provides oversight of the investigation and remediation of releases that threaten or have impacted water quality at both active and closed military facilities.
- Land Disposal Program
The Land Disposal program regulates the discharge of waste to land for treatment, storage and disposal in waste management units. Waste management units include waste piles, surface impoundments, and landfills. Remediation is sometimes necessary of groundwater near these units.
Cal/EPA’s regulatory boards and departments play an essential role in cleaning up contaminated sites to protect public health and the environment. Cal/EPA’s web site includes additional information on various brownfields initiatives and tools sponsored by Cal/EPA.
Brownfield Memorandum Of Agreement
Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal/EPA), Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board), and Regional Water Quality Control Boards (Regional Water Boards) signed a Memorandum of Agreement (.pdf format) regarding the regulatory oversight of brownfields in California. This effort was in response to the Secretary's July 20, 2004 Brownfields Initiative memo (.pdf format).
The purpose of the MOA is to improve coordination between DTSC, the State Water Board, and the Regional Water Boards on the oversight of cleanup activities at brownfields sites.
- Procedures for Requesting Oversight at Brownfield Sites - The most significant change that the MOA represents is that for brownfields sites, anyone requesting oversight from DTSC or a Regional Water Board must submit an application to initiate the process to assign the appropriate oversight agency. The following documents, are available for your use:
- Request for Oversight of a Brownfield Site PDF | MS Word
- Site Information Needed for Oversight Agency Selection
- When you have prepared a request, you may submit it to either the DTSC or Regional Water Board office in your geographic area. The Brownfields Coordinators in those offices will contact the other agency and reply with the name and contact information for the selected oversight agency
Financial Assistance
Various grant and loan programs are available to help assess and/or clean up brownfield sites in California:
- Underground Storage Tank Cleanup Fund (USTCF)
For petroleum fuel releases: The Fund assists a large number of small businesses and individuals by providing reimbursement for unexpected and catastrophic expenses associated with the clean up of leaking petroleum underground storage tanks. The Fund also provides money to the Regional Water Boards and local regulatory agencies to abate emergency situations or to cleanup abandoned sites that pose a threat to human health, safety, and the environment, as a result of a petroleum release from a underground storage tanks. Many brownfields in the State have actual or suspected contamination from leaking underground storage tanks. Many UST sites, including brownfields, are eligible for reimbursement of investigation and cleanup costs through the Underground Storage Tank Cleanup Fund.
- Contamination Orphan Site Cleanup Subaccount (OSCA)
For petroleum fuel releases: The OSCA Program was established to provide financial assistance to eligible applicants for the cleanup of brownfields sites contaminated by leaking petroleum underground storage tanks where there is no financially responsible party.
- CalReuse Program
The CalReUSE Program offers low-interest, forgivable loans to assist public and private partners in redeveloping contaminated brownfields.
- Targeted Site Investigation Program
The Small Business Liability Relief & Brownfields Revitalization Act that that was signed in January 2002 provides funds to assess and clean up Brownfields sites and to enhance state and tribal response programs. Under this grant, DTSC has been awarded $1.5 million per fiscal year since 2003/2004, of which $550K per fiscal year is allocated to the Targeted Site Investigation (TSI) program.
- Center for Creative Land Recycling (CCLR) Forgivable Loan Program
Center for Creative Land Reuse (CCLR)'s innovative loan program provides low-interest, forgivable loans of up to $125,000 for brownfields site assessment and characterization, technical assistance, and remedial action planning. To date, they have closed on $1.3 million in loans, helping to facilitate the development of over 1,000 housing units and 350,000 square feet of commercial and industrial space.
- CLEAN (Cleanup Loans and Environmental Assistance to Neighborhoods)
In 2000, Governor Gray Davis signed into law the "Cleanup Loans and Environmental Assistance to Neighborhoods (CLEAN) Program" (Senate Bill 667, Sher) establishing new financial incentives to encourage property owners, developers, community groups and local governments to redevelop abandoned and underutilized urban properties in California.
- FAIR (Financial Assurances and Insurance for Redevelopment)
SB 468 (Chapter 549, Statutes of 2001) established the second part of the California Financial Assurance and Insurance for Redevelopment Program (FAIR Program). The objective of the FAIR Program is to lower the transaction costs of “environmental insurance” with Cal/EPA providing a package of pre-negotiated and standardized policies to stimulate the cleanup and redevelopment of brownfields and other environmentally impaired properties throughout the state. Through a competitive bidding process, the Secretary of Cal/EPA will select the insurance company or companies (depending upon whether the request for proposal specifies one or more than one company), which will provide the insurance products for a three-year period.
- USEPA Programs
Information on loans and grants for brownfields that are administered by the USEPA.
- List of Various Funding Sources
The Center for Creative Land Reuse has developed a comprehensive guidance document describing various State and Federal Brownfields funding sources for assessment, cleanup, and redevelopment work at Brownfields sites.
Liability Relief
- California Land Environmental Restoration and Reuse Act (SB 32)
SB 32 (Chapter 764, Statutes of 2001) by Senator Escutia enacted the California Land Environmental Restoration and Reuse Act. The Act establishes a local agency hazardous materials cleanup program designed to help return brownfields to productive use. In addition, it requires Cal/EPA to provide a variety of information related to brownfields cleanups, and to develop a set screening values for hazardous substances commonly found at brownfields sites. The information required by SB 32, as well as other information regarding Cal/EPA’s brownfields efforts, is located at this website.
- California Land Reuse and Revitalization Act of 2004 (AB 389)
The California Land Reuse and Revitalization Act of 2004 (AB 389, Montanez), effective January 1, 2005, provides liability protection to brownfields developers, innocent landowners and contiguous property owners which are intended to promote the cleanup and redevelopment of blighted contaminated properties. The bill establishes a process for eligible property owners to obtain the immunities, conduct a site assessment and implement a response action, if necessary, to ensure that the property is ready for reuse. Further information including fact sheets and an application, are available at this website.
- Polanco Act
The Polanco Redevelopment Act (AB 3193, Chapter 1113, Statutes of 1990, Polanco), part of the Community Redevelopment Act, was enacted to assist redevelopment agencies in responding to brownfields properties in their redevelopment areas. It prescribes processes for redevelopment agencies to follow when cleaning up a hazardous substance release in a redevelopment project area. It also provides immunity from liability for redevelopment agencies and subsequent property purchasers for sites cleaned up under a cleanup plan approved by DTSC or a Regional Water Board. The Polanco Redevelopment Act has become a widely used tool by redevelopment agencies to guide and pursue redevelopment of brownfields. Redevelopment agencies requesting approval of their cleanup plans under the provisions of the Polanco Act are required to reimburse DTSC’s and/or the Regional Water Boards’ oversight costs.
- Site Designation Committee
The purpose of the Site Designation process is to allow a Responsible Party who agrees to carry out a site investigation and remedial action to request the Site Designation Committee within the California Environmental Protection Agency to designate a single state or local agency to oversee the site investigation and remedial action.
Geotracker And Envirostor
Geotracker is a map-based information system that provides online access to environmental data for sites (open or closed) under Water Board oversight that are being characterized and/or cleaned up.
Envirostor is a similar system for sites under Department of Toxic Substances control oversight.
Other Brownfield Information
- Water Board Sites with Deed Restrictions
A list of names, deed date, description, Assessor’s ID Number, street address and County of properties that have State-mandated land use restrictions.
- Brownfield MOA Sites – This information will be coming soon.
Additional Resources
- Department of Toxic Substances Control
DTSC has integrated existing cleanup programs and developed a number of new tools to facilitate reuse of brownfields properties.
- USEPA – Brownfields Cleanup and Redevelopment
This site contains information about US EPA’s Brownfields Program including the Brownfields Law, US EPA Brownfields Grants, technical tools and resources as well as information on brownfields projects across the country.
- Links to State Brownfields Program Web sites
USEPA’s compilation of various State Brownfields Web sites.
- Brownfields News - The California Pollution Control Financing Authority has implemented the California Recycle Underutilized Sites (CALReUSE) Program to assist with the reuse and redevelopment of underutilized properties with real or perceived contamination issues (brownfields).
- Brownfield funding workshops were held in Sacramento, Oakland, Los Angeles, and San Diego during July and August 2008 for local governments and redevelopment agencies. These workshops presented Brownfield grant and loan information from USEPA, the Water Boards, and the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC). Available grants and loans, and the application process, were discussed along with the best ways to complete a successful application. The schedule for any future Brownfield funding workshops involving the Water Board will be posted on this website.
- Workshop Slides PDF | PowerPoint
(updated 10/30/07)