Restoring Abandoned Inner City Sites is Key to Preserving Greenspace and Quality of Life, Letter to Davis and Lungren Says

SACRAMENTO, CA - In an unusual alliance, the California Chamber of Commerce, the California League of Conservation Voters, and other environmental, business and community groups are calling on candidates Gray Davis and Dan Lungren to prioritize restoration of California's "brownfields" as a solution to sprawl and urban decay.

California is home to more than 38,000 brownfields - once thriving commercial or industrial properties now sitting idle, or abandoned, often located in communities of color. Among the signatories of the letter are more than 50 of the most prominent business associations and environmental groups in the state, including the California Manufacturers Association, Bank of America, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Silicon Valley Manufacturing Group, and Communities for a Better Environment.

"What this letter demonstrates is the ground swell of support for land recycling efforts as a way to both contain sprawl and revitalize inner cities - and the will to make brownfield redevelopment a reality," said George Brewster, executive director of the California Center for Land Recycling (CCLR), which circulated the letter. CCLR is a project of the Trust for Public Land, a national nonprofit land conservation organization based in San Francisco.

In the past, industry and environmentalists have differed on liability for waste cleanup and clean-up standards for these sites - disagreements that prevented the reauthorization of the state Superfund law last month. The letter alluded to these differences, but emphasized the importance of moving forward on points of consensus.

"We recognize these differences, but we believe the brownfields issue is important enough to warrant continued and vigorous dialogue," the letter reads. "Discussion should begin with clear areas of consensus, such as the need for financial incentives to encourage site cleanup and reuse."

"The sunsetting of the state's Superfund program should be viewed as an opportunity to start fresh," Brewster added. "Now is the time to sit down at the table and hammer out incentives for cleanup and redevelopment, while safeguarding environmental and safety standards for communities."

On September 29, 1998, CCLR will release a comprehensive policy paper, "Strategies for Promoting Brownfield Reuse in California," that examines successful brownfield reuse programs in other states and offers concrete recommendations on statewide policies to help overcome obstacles to land recycling in California.