The Site Assessment Group, of the Superfund Section, has obtained a Brownfields property investigation grant from the Superfund Program of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA).  The Brownfield Redevelopment Assessment (BFRA) grants supplement the state Brownfieds grants and outreach program.  Utilizing these federal funds, staff provide 12 free investigations per year to customers, including local units of government and developers, to evaluate properties for redevelopment.  The BFRAs provide enough information to make remedial and due care decisions before a party commits to purchase and/or redevelop a property.  While federal funds are used, a property is not entered into the Superfund evaluation or National Priorities List nomination process unless specifically requested by the state.

How are sites selected for assessment?

Candidate properties are identified by a local unit of government and provided to the RRD Brownfields Coordination Committee, which determines the investigation priority among the candidate properties. Properties under consideration for development of public facilities are eligible for investigation. If a private development project is intended for the candidate property, it is preferred that a developer have a strong interest in the property before a request for investigation is submitted and that the property has tax-reverted to the state or is under the control of the local unit government.

Goal

The investigation goal is to identify potential contaminated areas on a property which may need to be remediated prior to redevelopment. The investigation provides information that could be used as basis for a facility determination by the RRD Compliance and Enforcement Section or a District Office pursuant to Part 201 of the NREPA. The data may also provide the basis for a Baseline Environmental Assessment (BEA), although supplemental data may be necessary. A review of the potential imminent hazard is made to assist in determining whether a removal action may be needed at the property. A health assessment may also be conducted by the Michigan Department of Community Health Division of Health Risk Assessment, Site Assessment Section. The data are shared with the local unit of government, any potential developer, and the RRD District Office as soon as the data are available so that any property redevelopment discussions can occur.

Nature of investigations

The property investigations consist of a review of background information, identification of past operational practices, identification of evidence of contamination from file searches, a property visit to evaluate the need for sample collection, and field sampling of appropriate media such as soils, groundwater, surface water, or sediments. The Site Assessment Group may utilize its Geoprobe unit to obtain deep soil and/or groundwater samples as appropriate. The potential exposure pathways and potential off-property migration pathways appropriate to the property are investigated. Sample locations and property features are precisely located using a satellite-based Global Positioning System. Samples collected during the field investigation will be analyzed by the MDEQ Laboratory and the USEPA Contract Laboratory Program utilizing all inorganic and organic compound procedures. Field measurements of metal concentrations can also be made using a hand-held X-ray Fluorescence Unit. As appropriate additional investigations such as electromagnetometer or ground penetrating radar surveys, asbestos evaluations relative to-the regulatory threshold of the National Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants - Asbestos NESHAP Revision, and indoor lead may be conducted. If there are standing buildings the property, the local unit of government may be asked to conduct a building safety/condemnation survey before the Site Assessment Group conducts its sampling visit(s).