Remedial action

Every remediation project looks different, from scope to materials involved to timeline, as do the methods for funding remediation.

Looking back at recent memorable remediation projects covered by Construction & Demolition Recycling, we identified five innovative ways communities and companies across the country have approached remediation funding.

In Frankfort, New York, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) removed nearly 30,000 tons of debris as part of its 2022 cleanup of asbestos contamination at the Charlestown Mall after a fire destroyed the former manufacturing and retail space.

In situations where there is no viable responsible party, the Superfund program gives EPA the funds and authority to clean up contaminated sites. A state agency, EPA regional office or any person or organization can notify the EPA of a potentially hazardous site. The EPA then conducts a preliminary assessment and site inspection to determine whether the site qualifies for cleanup under Superfund and is potentially eligible for federal funds for cleanup and remediation.

Following cleanup, the EPA’s Superfund Redevelopment Program provides ongoing reuse support services to the community to transform the site from a “liability into an asset supporting economic development.”

The Superfund Redevelopment Program works with local communities to help repurpose cleaned-up sites. The program provides site owners and prospective buyers with direct support, such as technical assistance, redevelopment planning services, tools and resources to help communities explore reuse choices.

For more information on the EPA’s Superfund program, visit www.epa.gov.

The Houston Land Bank (HLB) and the city of Houston entered into an innovative land banking agreement in 2023 as part of ongoing efforts to revitalize a former incinerator site. The agreement allows for beneficial reuse for the community and enables the city to apply for EPA funding to clean up the former Velasco Incinerator site.

The city operated the 4.56-acre site as a municipal incinerator facility from the 1920s through the late 1960s. During those 40 years of incinerator operations, ash and fill material were deposited on the property at a depth of 4 feet to 35 feet below the ground surface. Multiple environmental assessment activities conducted since 2006 have demonstrated that this waste contains elevated levels of arsenic, lead, mercury, dioxins and furans.

The city says the site has remained vacant for decades due to the complexities of cleaning the environmental hazards on the property. The agreement requires working with strategic partners, local stakeholders and the community to create a green space and reuse plan for the site.

Estimated cleanup costs are $7 million. Cleanup activities include covering contaminated soil and waste material with protective material to prevent the spread of pollutants, reduce exposure to harmful substances and promote environmental safety and health.

Earlier this year, the Seattle City Council unanimously passed legislation that would allow the Seattle Fire Department to expedite the demolition or remediation of dangerous vacant buildings. According to Council, 130 vacant building fire incidents occurred in 2023.

“The inability to demolish these hazards has contributed to a permissive environment where government stands by as predictable accidents and crimes occur,” says Councilmember Bob Kettle in a news release.

The bill amends the Seattle Fire Code to allow the fire department to order remediation or complete demolition of derelict buildings. It requires property owners to pay for necessary work to make dangerous buildings or sites safe, authorizes the city to conduct needed abatement work in extreme cases to improve a site’s safety and places liens on properties to recover costs.

The Buffalo Color Corp. plant in New York was an industrial site owned and operated by Allied Chemical that produced dyes and organic chemicals starting in 1879.

Through a private-public partnership, Allied predecessor Honeywell partnered with a Buffalo businessperson and a brownfield redeveloper to clean up the site. The result was a partnership with the EPA’s Great Lakes National Program Office, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to clean up the Buffalo River.

Over eight years, Honeywell says, the Buffalo River Restoration Partnership removed contaminated sediment, installed aquatic and plant habitats and decreased contaminants in the food web.

Recent trends have brought people and businesses back to urban centers, typically filled with older buildings rife with asbestos, lead and other hazardous materials. It’s given rise to firms specializing in remediation and historic renovation and rehabilitation. However, since many contractors offer remediation or demolition services but not both, clients often are forced to hire multiple firms to handle the process.

Seek out contractors such as ADEP Group, short for American Demolition Environmental Professionals, that handle both instead. ADEP, based in Lawrence, Massachusetts, has cultivated crews with extensive experience in both disciplines to provide turnkey solutions in environmental remediation and demolition for customers in New England.

Environmental Resources Management, based in London, brings a similar approach to remediation and demolition, says Susan Angyal, ERM’s regional CEO for North America. Maintaining a well-balanced business with capabilities across the asset life cycle, she says, has been critical to the company’s success.

“We find many of our competitors to be primarily focused on the end-of-life phase, like remediation, which provides good, sustained revenues but is becoming increasingly commoditized,” Angyal tells C&DR for a 2020 cover profile. “Our broader client platform makes us more resilient as different parts of the market tend to ebb and flow.”

The author is managing editor of Construction & Demolition Recycling and can be reached at smann@gie.net.