HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Engineers’ Society of Western Pennsylvania has announced a call for presentations for the next Pennsylvania Brownfields Conference to be held May 13-15, 2015, at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center in Erie.
Presentations should address topics such as land use planning, community renewal, remediation technology, and public engagement to educate engineers, stakeholders and local government officials.
The 2015 conference will commemorate the 20-year anniversary of Pennsylvania’s Land Recycling Act, the law that encouraged the voluntary cleanup and reuse of contaminated commercial and industrial sites. The conference will also include mobile workshops; a video showcase of success stories; technical updates on market trends and treatment options; and a tiered track of courses that will provide continuing education credits for professionals attending the conference.
This year’s conference will also include a new “Best of” land recycling contest. Stakeholders are encouraged to nominate successful brownfields redevelopment projects for the contest. All types of brownfield projects are encouraged; they can be up to 20 years old.
Organizers hold the conference in different regions of the state each year and develop conference content with input from an advisory panel of industry experts. This is the tenth Pennsylvania Brownfields Conference.
Brownfields are properties that are in need of expansion, redevelopment or reuse, but because of actual or anticipated hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminants, that work is made more challenging. Pennsylvania’s approach to brownfields redevelopment has proven to be a national model for transforming abandoned, idle properties into places of environmental protection and economic opportunity.
Presentations for consideration are due by Dec. 12. Nominations for the “Best of” land recycling contest are due by Jan. 31, 2015. To submit a presentation or nomination, visit www.eswp.com/brownfields/.
General registration for the conference will open in the winter. Interested persons should visit the Engineers’ Society of Western Pennsylvania’s Facebook and website for conference updates.
To learn more about brownfields redevelopment in Pennsylvania, visit www.dep.state.pa.us or call 717-783-1566.