Washington State Brownfield Policy Recommendations

The Washington State legislature is considering a brownfield package of legislative actions (known as MTCA 3.0) to improve the ability to undertake and complete brownfield cleanup and redevelopment projects. The package contains a number of brownfield tools that were identified in a report completed in 2011 by Maul Foster & Alongi for the Washington State Department of Ecology.

The proposal will include:

• improvements to the prospective purchaser agreement process;
• the creation of publicly funded trusts;
• making the Integrated Planning Grants a permanent program;
• including a definition of brownfields in state planning policy;
• and the ability of public agencies to create brownfield development authorities with special tools and opportunities.

The 2011 Washington State Brownfield Policy Recommendations report is available at www.ecy.wa.gov/biblio/1109051.html on the state’s ecology website.