Brownfield development: the remediation and demolition of two MGP sites and a former steel mill

M.A. Fleri and G.T. Whetstone 

Abstract
Brownfield development is a maturing industry in the United States. With an emphasis on cities and states to increase tax revenues, the revitalization of former industrial sites is seen as one remedy to increase revenues and reacquire what was once prime real estate. Many former industrial sites are located on or near lakes, rivers, and canals near the heart of a city. With the closure, or in some cases the abandonment, of these sites, the merchants and workers soon left the surrounding communities, leaving large areas of older cities in disrepair.
This paper follows the efforts of three communities in the midst of revitalization. Two projects are MGP sites located in Georgia, USA, and the former steel mill site is located in Missouri, USA. One property was part of a master plan to revitalize the Third Level Canal – a national heritage landmark – in Augusta, Georgia; another property was incorporated into a river walk and park along the Chattahoochee River commemorating the quincentennial of Columbus’s discovery of America. The final property was improved for future industrial development. All required the respective communities to assess the need for revitalization; the cities and the federal government to provide tax incentives and indemnification from legacy wastes; and finally the financial vision and wherewithal to proceed with the work. These projects all involved contaminated properties that required remediation via deep soil mixing or demolition. 

Key words: brownfields, deep soil mixing, demolition, in situ stabilization, manufactured gas plants, polychlorinated biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, solid waste management unit, underground storage tanks, volatile organic compounds 

Land Contamination & Reclamation, 14 (1), 2006, 69-83

DOI 10.2462/09670513.706

Updated: 26-Jun-2006