Bethlehem Steel Supports EPA Release to Encourage Redevelopment at Lackawanna
Bethlehem Steel Corporation
For Immediate Release
BETHLEHEM, Pa., March 16, 2001 - In response to media inquiries concerning the release by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of a 102-acre parcel of land from an earlier agreement to facilitate redevelopment at Bethlehem Steel Corporation's Lackawanna, N.Y., facility, the following statement was provided:
Bethlehem Steel appreciates the current release as well as the agency's decision last year to select this 102-acre parcel as one of four pilot sites for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's RCRA/brownfields initiative. This collaborative process to return Bethlehem Steel's Lackawanna property to productive use is testimony to the integrity of our environmental program. The release and the pilot covers 102 acres of land along Furhman Boulevard that is vacant and suitable for development once a further environmental assessment and any associated remediation have been completed consistent with New York's Department of Environmental Conservation "voluntary clean-up program" guidelines.
We believe this pilot can be a key element of a new public/private partnership to develop portions of the Lackawanna site and that it can be an example of how to streamline the investigation, cleanup and redevelopment of former industrial properties. We also believe this effort will lead to other desirable outcomes such as developing a more effective Brownfields program in New York State, resolving some regulatory constraints and helping local Western New York communities create new jobs and add to their tax base.
Bethlehem is currently working with the EPA and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation concerning the details and schedule of implementation, which is expected to occur later this year.