Brownfield Redevelopment: Dorr-Smead Brownfields, Toledo, Ohio

Transcription

1 Brownfield Redevelopment: Dorr-Smead Brownfields, Toledo, Ohio Description Toledo has had a strong industrial base for the past century. During the first four decades of the twentieth century, the city grew rapidly as jobs and people located in the city for its Lake Erie port, industrial resources, and proximity to Detroit. Toledo s economy was based on manufacturing, especially automotive including assembly, glass, transmissions, and many supplies and parts. Toledo s population peaked at 383,818 in By then the city was losing industrial jobs, a process that has since continued. By 2010 the population had dropped to 287,208. While jobs and the population they supported departed, the factories were abandoned. The remaining inner city is lower income with a high proportion of minority residents that has diminished access to the well-paying jobs that were once available. Many of the abandoned factories are now brownfields due to the materials used in the construction and manufacturing activities. The City of Toledo identifies 410 brownfield sites covering a total of 1,927 acres. The majority of Toledo s brownfields are concentrated in the inner-city area The majority of the City s industrial brownfield sites are located along rail corridors. Railroads were a major factor in locating a business in Toledo a hundred years ago. The city defines this area as its Brownfield Impact Area (Figure 1). Figure 1 Toledo's Brownfield Impact Area C:\nacept\CASE STUDY Erichsen 2.DOC 1/7

2 The subject of this case study is a group of three brownfield sites located near Dorr Street and Detroit Avenue. The largest brownfield was the Doehler-Jarvis Plant #1, which was a producer of die-cast automotive parts. 1 The other brownfields are Craft House and Fernwood, which collectively we are referring to as the Dorr- Smead brownfields. The abandoned buildings at several of the sites have been razed, but they posed hazards until they were taken down. Other nearby abandoned or underutilitized buildings remain. EJ/VP Status A third of Toledo s population resides in the Brownfield Impact Area, representing half of the impoverished population, and an unemployment rate 50% higher than the rest of the city. From 1970 to 2000, the city lost 70,000 residents; 94% of that decline occurred in the Brownfield Impact Area. Table 1 shows neighborhood demographics for the two census tracts that contain the Dorr-Smead brownfields 2. Area Table 1 Dorr-Smead Area 2009 Demographics Compared with City, State, and National Data Median Household Income 3 Individuals Below Poverty Level Percent Minority 4 Census Tract $19, % 98.6% Census Tract 25 $ % 99.4% Toledo $35, % 31.1% Ohio $47, % 16.0% United States $51, % 25.5% Several vulnerable populations are affected by the Dorr-Smead brownfields. 1 Die Castings site 2 The 2010 population figure for Toledo shows a population drop of 8.4% since 2000; compared with a 5.8% decrease and 6.1% , the rate of loss shows acceleration. "City of Toledo Population". U.S. Census Bureau. &_county=toledo&_citytown=toledo&_zip=&_sse=on&_lang=en&pctxt=fph. With increasing population loss and the national recession, the 2010 are likely to show increased inner city abandonment. 3 In 2009, inflation adjusted. Source: American Community Survey Year Estimates; US Census Bureau, factfinder.gov 4 The American Community Survey reports percent White; the number shown is the total of all other races, plus two or more races. C:\nacept\CASE STUDY Erichsen 2.DOC 2/7

3 The predominantly lower income and/or minority neighborhood residents, are vulnerable to exposure by hazardous materials Children may have been particularly vulnerable to physical hazard at the sites, especially before the buildings were torn down. Risks of exposure to hazardous materials continue. Homeless persons: before demolition, abandoned buildings were occupied as shelter. Homeless persons taking refuge were subject to exposure to hazardous materials, to physical hazards from unsafe structures, and fires set for warmth. Building material thieves: abandoned buildings and properties are subject to stripping for hardware and other salvageable materials. Those undertaking this activity are subject to the site s hazards. A related concept is Food Deserts which the CDC describes as areas that lack access to affordable fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat milk, and other foods that make up the full range of a healthy diet. 5 The USDA offers an online Food Atlas 6 with county-level data on access to healthy food and links to information on affordable and nutritious food. Factors that determine a Food Desert include low income households; households without cars; and distance to grocery stores, as opposed to depending on convenience stores or restaurants, which are likely to be more expensive and less healthy. Urban agriculture can create a Food Hub in that desert. Pollutants Asbestos 7, arsenic 8, TCE, 9 VOCs 10, lead, 11 and PAHs 12 on the sites themselves. In Toledo, ambient arsenic levels (around 14 ppm) often exceed the Ohio Voluntary Action Program Generic Direct Contact Standards for soil of 6.7 ppm for residential land use. Asbestos containing building materials were utilized when the factories were constructed. PAHs are associated with heavy end petroleum products, such as diesel fuel and oils, and are even components of asphalt. Additionally, some sites contained drums, which contained undetermined materials or were formerly utilized to store unknown materials. Potential exposure pathways impacting human health include direct exposure to or ingestion of these materials or contaminated soils; through ingestion of vegetables or fruit grown in contaminated soils (see discussion below), through C:\nacept\CASE STUDY Erichsen 2.DOC 3/7

4 site runoff into streams; or through groundwater. If a future building were constructed on a contaminated site, contaminated soils under it could lead to indoor air contamination. Indirect pollutants include: nonpoint source pollution due to sediment and erosion, which increase the levels of nitrates and phosphates in streams, leading to Great Lakes Harmful Algal Blooms 13. These pollutants are relevant because the difficulties of redeveloping brownfield sites creates an economic incentive to develop greenfield sites instead. Failure to redevelop brownfields encourages urban sprawl and nonpoint source stormwater pollution. Key Players City of Toledo, the Lucas County Improvement Corporation (LCIC), Toledo Community Development Corporation (CDC), US EPA Region V, HUD, Ohio EPA, the Ohio Department of Development Clean Ohio Fund 14, the Center for Innovative Food Technology, the University of Toledo (UT), Toledo Grows, and Kansas State University. Of the Dorr-Smead brownfields, Toledo CDC owns Fernwood, LCIC owns Doehler- Jarvis, and the City of Toledo owns Craft House. Toledo and LCIC coordinate site remediation and beneficial redevelopment with EPA and HUD; the Center for Innovative Food Technology, the University of Toledo (UT), and Toledo Grows are partners in developing urban agriculture for the site. Technologies Brownfield assessment and remediation: established VAP procedures for Phase I and Phase II property assessments 15 were followed to assess the impacts at the brownfield sites and remedial activities included excavation and off-site disposal of impacted soils, and abatement of asbestos-containing materials. Economic redevelopment: EPA can set standards for cleanups, but the driving force behind the cleanup can only be economic. Redevelopment provides the economic incentive for remediation. Redevelopment creates jobs by putting property back into productive use. Job growth would raise the income level of residents, directly addressing the main cause of its being an Environmental Justice community. Cross cutting strategies based on partnerships between federal, state, and local agencies, with central involvement by environmental and economic development agencies and community organizations are essential. US EPA Region V provided funding and technical support; and both HUD and the Clean Ohio Fund have supported revitalization through assessment funding Phase I: investigation of potential site contamination through document searches; Phase II: thorough site review including soil and water testing; Phase III: Investigation and Remedial Action Plan C:\nacept\CASE STUDY Erichsen 2.DOC 4/7

5 Ohio VAP: Ohio s VAP 16 can be used to set cleanup standards for the sites and obtain a Covenant Not to Sue (CNS) with the State of Ohio. While the VAP has not been fully utilized for the Dorr-Smead brownfields, the program facilitates many cleanup agreements between property owners and Ohio regulatory agencies. The program also sets risk-based cleanup standards based on the end use: commercial/industrial, residential, or construction. The residential standard, based on physical contact with the soil, is the most protective. Beneficial Redevelopment Urban Agriculture: While Toledo would be happy to see the return of the jobs at the Dorr-Smead area and many other inner-city brownfields that once supported 65,000 more residents than live there today, the economic incentive to re-establish the industrial base no longer exists. The long, narrow Doehler-Jarvis site along a railroad was attractive to industry in the early and mid 20 th century, but today highway access is more important, which the site lacks. The land must be put to new uses which will provide new benefits for a changing community. EPA provides resources for pursuing agriculture projects as a part of brownfield redevelopment and reuse. The agency website offers basic references on brownfields, how-to-do-it guides for urban agriculture, and links to many other sites, including local projects. 17 The Toledo CDC is bringing the land back to productive use through redevelopment as an urban agriculture business called the Fernwood Growing Center 18 offering several benefits: Promotes community revitalization by returning the land to beneficial use. Eliminates the attractive nuisance of a vacant property from the neighborhood. Provides community members with access to fresh, healthy food; fosters understanding of healthy food preparation and consumption. Promotes stewardship for the environment and neighborhood. Beautifies the neighborhood. Provides 25 jobs for community residents, in addition to supporting local nurseries and other businesses. Makes the neighborhood a more attractive setting for additional redevelopment and new job creation. Phytoremediation: Vegetation may be grown to uptake contaminants from soil; when harvested, the plant material removes contaminants from the site. This technique has not yet been used at these particular sites, but is being considered in future planning. Also, in another part of the Toledo area, the University of urban agriculture and social capital in toledo byrubin paterson phd.html C:\nacept\CASE STUDY Erichsen 2.DOC 5/7

6 Toledo is conducting research on the uptake of arsenic, which is typically found in relatively high levels in area soils 19, 20. Status Successful with challenges for continued implementation. The City of Toledo and LCIC have used a $2 million brownfield revolving loan fund and other grants to remediate these and other brownfield sites in Toledo. The funding sources have been the Clean Ohio Fund, HUD, and US EPA. Abandoned aboveground and belowground structures have been razed at all three of the Dorr-Smead Brownfields; remediation at Fernwood is complete. Numerous urban agriculture programs are benefiting Toledo neighborhoods; construction of the Fernwood Growing Center is planned following securing funding. Planned food production includes aquaponics farming, where tilapia and an assortment of greens and herbs year-around will be produced in raised beds and vertical growing systems. Farming in remediated soil may occur. Studies are planned for the Craft House site to test the soil for contaminants, and whether vegetables take up any legacy chemicals. The study will aid understanding of conditions under which these soils might be used for food production. The Ohio VAP program sets remediation standards based on types of land reuse residential, commercial/industrial, or construction/excavation. Standards have not been set, but are needed, for urban agriculture. Urban agriculture use may involve lower risk than residential use. The contaminant pathway for agriculture would come from soil through the roots of vegetables, whereas the pathway for residential use would be through direct contact with contaminated soil. Safe levels of contamination for soils used for urban agriculture could be developed through a risk assessment. Another outstanding question urban agriculture centers and brownfields sites is whether plants can absorb contaminants that may be in shallow perched groundwater. On a lot of sites the groundwater may be deep enough that plants with shallow root systems including most vegetables would not be affected. However, plants such as fruit trees and some fruit bushes, which have deeper root systems, could possibly reach impacted groundwater. Under an EPA grant, Vita Nuova 21 is developing an Urban Farming Planning Tool. Its purpose is to provide a business planning framework for distressed communities that surround brownfield sites. Vita Nuova will work with local partners to customize the tool for site-specific application. It will provide TCDC with a model for conducting urban farming as a business, and help raise capital C:\nacept\CASE STUDY Erichsen 2.DOC 6/7

7 Acknowledgments City of Toledo Ohio, Hull & Associates, LCIC, The Mannik & Smith Group, Ohio EPA, TTL Associates Inc., US EPA Office of Brownfields & Land Revitalization, Vita Nuova Thank you for review and valuable contributions to this case study. C:\nacept\CASE STUDY Erichsen 2.DOC 7/7