Section 250-RICR-140-30-2.1 - PurposeA. The purpose of these regulations is to create a Brownfields Remediation and Economic Development Fund to receive, hold and administer the use of the $5,000,000 portion of the 2014 Rl Clean Water, Open Space, and Healthy Communities Bond and any future bond allocations earmarked for similar purposes. The funds will provide grants to public, private, and non-profit entities for brownfield remediation projects with specific priority given to projects involving job creation and economic development.B. Although an exact number is not known, it is estimated that over 10,000 brownfield sites are located in towns and cities across Rhode Island. Many acres of brownfields occupy prime commercial/industrial locations within the state's urban corridor. Remediation and redevelopment of these sites mitigates the threat to public health and the environment from exposure to uncontrolled contamination, creates and attracts jobs, reduces the use of "greenfields" outside urban areas and increases local tax base. Specifically, the EPA estimates that 7.30 jobs are leveraged per $100,000 of funding expended on brownfields remediation and other economic studies indicate that for every brownfields acre "recycled," up to four acres of open space is spared from development.C. The grants issued pursuant to these regulations will stimulate the clean-up and redevelopment of Brownfields sites across Rhode Island. The grant program, and specifically the criteria for evaluating and prioritizing applications, is designed to provide a one-stop resource for owners and developers for funding support and technical assistance to facilitate and accelerate the return of brownfields to productive re-use and strengthen Rhode Island's economic base. In general, these funds should be used to clean up sites in Rhode Island, create jobs, small businesses, and add to the tax base of the communities where they are utilized.250 R.I. Code R. 250-RICR-140-30-2.1
Amended effective 4/22/2020