Brownfield Development
20 December 2005

brownfield (n) : abandoned, idled or underused industrial and commercial facility where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination.

As virgin land becomes scarce, developers have become more open-minded to the useful possibilities of brownfields. These sites are both a resource for and burden to the urban environment. Though brownfields are fraught with environmental hazards, access to existing infrastructure is their saving grace. Luckily for blighted cities everywhere, rehabilitating these sites has proven environmentally and lucratively sound.

Brownfields are vacated lots, often including abandoned buildings, that are considered too polluted for redevelopment. Common examples include automotive manufactures, gas and service stations, dry cleaning, dye facilities, landfills, industrial printers, hospitals, and rail yards. Almost any vacant site used previously for industrial activity could be considered a brownfield. Whether contamination is real or perceived, the sites always need some restoration before reclamation.

It is the urban community which benefits most significantly from this type of redvelopment. However, were it not for the massive money-making possibilities of brownfield development, their potential would never be realized. Hence, brownfield development began in the late 1980’s, when private firms began to buy these devastated sites from the city. Due to little or no market demand, these parcels of land were very inexpensive. An investment to restore the site would be returned sometimes 100-fold upon the resale of the property.

The real reward is the transformation from an eye-sore into a seamless piece of the urban fabric. One of the most compelling decontamination methods is the process of phytoremediation. This is a sequential program utilizing the natural abilities of certain plants to remove pollutants from the soil. Sorrel, cattail, sunflowers, and clover are familiar plants which have these beneficial properties. Not only is this an incredibly sustainable solution, but it provides the community with a buffer of beautification during the redevelopment of the site.

Possible uses from this point are limitless. If the community is so inclined, the site may evolve into a neighborhood garden. This site could be used to foster all of the city’s sidewalk planters, nurturing trees and flowers until substantial enough to hold their own against the urban pollution, and eliminating the need to relocate these plants from elsewhere.

But perhaps the most comprehensive restoration of a brownfield sees its return to the built environment. After the decontamination period, the site is ready to be built up again. A phytoremediated site would be ready for such use in a couple of years. This happens to correspond with the schedule of a major development project. During the design phases, the site will decontaminate itself and establish a landscaping infrastructure. As both cycles reach their conclusion, the built form is reborn and a site that once sapped the beauty and resources from its surroundings begins the process of revitalization.

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