Carper Co-Sponsors Bill to Clean Up Brownfields Properties

WASHINGTON, DC – Senator Tom Carper (D-DE) today announced he will be an original co-sponsor of legislation that authorizes $150 million a year in grants to assess and clean up contaminated brownfields sites. The bill also authorizes an additional $50 million per year to states to establish and enhance clean-up programs. Senator Carper pledged to work in the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee to expand the Senate’s support of brownfields clean-up and assessment beyond the measures provided in the bill, whose primary sponsors are Senator Bob Smith (R-NH), Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) and Senator Lincoln Chafee (R-RI). “The bill is an important step in the right direction. But it must not be our final step, or we will have fallen far short of our commitment,” Senator Carper said. “Brownfields clean-up enhances economic development while protecting human health.” With years of experience as working to implement brownfields clean-ups on the state level as Governor, Carper pointed to the success of clean-up programs along the Christina Riverfront in Delaware. “Where once festered an industrial wasteland, now grows a beautiful riverfront that is helping to drive the economic revitalization of our state’s largest city,” Carper said.