Vermont is home to hundreds of brownfields– former industrial or commercial sites where hazardous materials remain. The Environmental Protection Agency recently awarded $1 million to four regional planning commissions in the state to help clean-up their polluted sites. But experts say it can take an average of $300,000 to clean up just one site. The state’s Department of Economic Conservation also runs a project to help prospective land buyers assess sites and fund their clean-up.
Don Einhorn is the agency’s Brownfields Project Manager. Sue Fillion is with the Windham Regional Planning Commission. They spoke with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about funding challenges, and what impact sites have on economic development.