The deal, announced this morning (October 15), is part of the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) RE-Powering America’s Land initiative contaminated land and mining sites will be remediated.

The draft plan sets out activities the EPA can take to build upon the progress that the initiative has achieved since its launch in September of 2008.

A spokesman said: “The EPA started the initiative to determine the feasibility of developing renewable energy production on Superfund, brownfields, and former landfill or mining sites.

“Superfund sites are the most complex, uncontrolled or abandoned hazardous waste sites identified by EPA for cleanup due to the risk they pose to human health or the environment. Brownfields are properties at which expansion, redevelopment, or reuse may be complicated by the presence of contaminants.

“The initiative aims to decrease the amount of green space used for development, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and provide health and economic benefits to local communities, including job creation.”

Activities to be undertaken as part of the draft plan include:

· Developing and expanding the toolbox of resources for use by EPA, states, and stakeholders including guidance, case studies and fact sheets

· Conducting outreach to different stakeholder groups

· Clarifying liability protections

· Adding other sites to the Google Earth mapping tool, such as state-tracked contaminated lands

· Launching a webinar series on October 21, which will be an overview of the RE-Powering initiative and on renewable energy on contaminated land

· Seeking collaborative opportunities with other federal agencies to site renewable energy projects on potentially contaminated land and mine sites

The public can submit comments on the draft plan on the RE-Powering website until November 30, 2010.

More information on the plan can be found

Luke Walsh

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