Breaking Down the NJEDA’s New Brownfields Impact Fund

On December 6, 2021, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) announced that the new Brownfields Impact Fund will launch later this winter.  The program will provide grant funding and low-interest loans to public sector and non-profit organizations, as well as low-interest loans to for-profit organizations, to carry out cleanup activities at brownfield sites throughout the state.  Potential applicants for the Brownfields Impact Fund can pre-qualify now by visiting https://www.njeda.com/brownfieldsimpactfund/.

Brownfields are former commercial or industrial sites that are vacant or underutilized and are suspected or known to be contaminated.  These properties have a negative impact on New Jersey’s economy because they lower property values, decrease employment opportunities, and lead to a loss of tax revenue.  Brownfields are diverse in terms of shape, size, contamination level, and location.  A brownfield can be a large, former industrial property or small, local site such as an abandoned gas station in a downtown area.

Overview of Brownfields Impact Fund

The Brownfields Impact Fund is a pilot program, funded by a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) grant, that will provide $800,000 in funding for entities to carry out cleanup activities at brownfield sites. The goal is to address funding gaps to make the remediation phase of the project financially viable and foster the redevelopment of brownfield sites for productive reuse. Loans and sub-grants will be available in amounts up to $350,000.

Eligibility for Brownfields Impact Fund

Entities eligible for loans include both for-profit and nonprofit organizations, as well as local governments. Meanwhile, subgrants may be awarded to nonprofit organizations and local governments.

Loans or subgrants can’t be provided to entities who caused or contributed to the contamination of the property. Specifically, this program excludes: individuals or entities responsible for, or individuals or entities who have common ownership or control with entities responsible for, any existing environmental contamination at the site or any individuals or entities that have indemnified a responsible party or a party who has common ownership or control with a responsible party.

Loan and grant recipients must also meet the EPA site control and eligibility requirements. For loans, borrowers must be able to demonstrate site control or a path to site control of a brownfield property. For subgrants, subgrantees must own the brownfield property at the time of the application and award of subgrant as well as must retain ownership of the site throughout the period of performance of the subgrant and must consult with NJEDA and EPA Project Officer prior to transferring title or otherwise conveying the real property compromising the site.

Eligible Activities Under Brownfields Impact Fund

Loans and/or subgrants will be available to fund the eligible environmental cleanup activities (not assessment or investigation). Below is a list of eligible activities:

• Preparation of Remedial Action Workplans
• Remediation of hazardous substances that are part of a structure such as: lead based paint (LBP) and asbestos containing material (ACM)
• A site’s engineered remediation cap which could include foundations/roadways
• Demolition of structures to the extent that the demolition is integral to enabling access to contamination needing remediation (must be pre-approved by  the EPA)
• Actions necessary to clean up the release or mitigate the threatened release of hazardous materials such as: provide fences, warning signs or other site control precautions; drainage controls; capping of contaminated soils; excavation, consolidation, or removal of highly contaminated soils
• Removal of containers that may contain hazardous substances; use of chemicals to retard the spread of hazardous substances; containment, treatment, disposal, or incineration of hazardous materials; and purchase of environmental insurance
• Site monitoring, including sampling and analysis, required during the cleanup process
• Monitoring and data collection which are required as a component of the cleanup action (including payment of the annual NJDEP remediation permit fees, if approved by the EPA)
• Installation of engineering and/or institutional controls to fulfill cleanup requirements

Applying for Brownfields Funding

Funding will be available on a rolling basis, first-come, first-served, based on the readiness of the application and the availability of funds. Potential applicants for the Brownfields Impact Fund can pre-qualify now by visiting https://www.njeda.com/brownfieldsimpactfund/. Eligible applicants will be invited to complete a full application.

For the initial 90 days after program launch, only applications for projects located in the Community Collaborative Initiative (CCI) communities will be considered. Thereafter, the program will be open throughout the state. Prior to closing, NJEDA will submit loans and subgrants to USEPA for applicant, activity and site eligibility.

If you have questions, please contact us

If you have any questions or if you would like to discuss your potential eligibility for this program, please contact me, Monica Schroeck, or the Scarinci Hollenbeck attorney with whom you work, at 201-896-4100.