Legislators On White Horses Save The Day For Developers
New regulation builds flexibility into brownfields remediation
Heroic developers who ride in on horseback to clean up dirty industrial properties are getting some help from their devoted squires in the state government.
At least, that is the imagery conjured up by the title of a regulatory change known as the "White Knight Provision" that concerns brownfields. The provision is expected to be finalized this month.
Since the passage of the Massachusetts Brownfields Act of 1998, state officials have encouraged developers to decontaminate and find uses for land sullied by industrial waste. But over the years, some of those who tried to do so were blocked by the law's requirements.
Resetting The Clock
Those requirements meant a builder purchasing a polluted property also inherited state-set timelines for cleanup efforts, and the previous owner might well have done little to keep those efforts on track. That could leave new owners vulnerable to state penalties, including the loss of tax credits and other financial help. Technically, they could even face fines from the Department of Environmental Protection, though, according to deputy regional director Mary Gardner, the department only issues fines when it can find no other way of dealing with a recalcitrant owner.
Thanks to the White Knight Provision, that's no longer the case. The new regulation resets timelines for a piece of land when it is purchased.
"We wanted them to have a new slate, a clean start," said Gardner.
Gardner said the department has always tried to work with anyone purchasing a brownfields property, often negotiating new timelines individually. But that was a time-consuming process for everyone involved, and it meant developers didn't always know what they were getting into when they considered purchasing a site.
Gardner said developers have been asking for the regulatory change, and she hopes it will make it simpler for them to develop polluted areas.
"It takes the uncertainty away," she said.
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