March 26, 2026\n<\/p>\n
PHILADELPHIA \u2013 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) joined the Engineers\u2019 Society of Western Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PA DEP), and statewide partners, grantees, and industry leaders to kick off the 2026 Pennsylvania Brownfields Conference in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Offering remarks during the opening plenary, EPA Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Amy Van Blarcom-Lackey emphasized the power of partnerships and the momentum behind brownfields revitalization across the Commonwealth.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBrownfields redevelopment protects public health, restores land and water, and bolsters economies — and we\u2019re seeing those benefits in communities across Pennsylvania,\u201d said Van Blarcom-Lackey. \u201cWhen we partner together with states and local communities \u2014 especially with in-person events like this \u2014 we move faster from assessment to reuse. Under President Trump\u2019s leadership, EPA is working to ensure our nation has the cleanest air, land, and water \u2013 and Brownfields projects prove that environmental stewardship and economic prosperity go hand in hand.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The EPA Mid-Atlantic Region Brownfields team poses for a photo at the 2026 Pennsylvania Brownfields Conference in Bethlehem, PA.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Throughout the conference, EPA emphasized how partnerships provide results\u2014aligning Brownfields investments with housing, infrastructure, and economic development, and transportation to move sites from assessment to reuse. Over the course of the three-day event, the Mid-Atlantic Region and its Technical Assistance to Brownfields (TAB) partners, universities, and nonprofits answered questions, discussed projects, strengthened community engagement, and assisted in the competitive application process.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Brownfields team, joined by Mid-Atlantic TAB, held an all-grantee workshop to kick off the event. Other presentations included Brownfields Project Officer Christian Smith highlighting EPA\u2019s Targeted Brownfield Assessment (TBA) program with TBA contractor, Batta Environmental. Acting Brownfields Section Chief Michael McDonald provided the conference with federal program updates and joined a panel to discuss Revitalization Playbooks, a holistic approach to site redevelopment. In her remarks, Regional Administrator Van Blarcom-Lackey noted that progress is visible across the Commonwealth. Pennsylvania communities have received hundreds of EPA Brownfields grants\u2014for assessment, cleanup, multipurpose planning, and job training\u2014supporting thousands of acres assessed and more than a thousand site assessments completed. These projects have leveraged nearly $2 billion in additional investment and created thousands of local jobs. She also highlighted several recent Commonwealth projects demonstrating environmental and economic benefits:\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ashley (Luzerne County): Working with Earth Conservancy, an EPA Cleanup Grant is restoring 15,000 feet of the Nanticoke Creek streamway, reconnecting upper and lower watersheds, and preventing acid mine drainage from reentering the creek\u2014delivering long-term environmental and community gains.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Carlisle (Cumberland County): The Commonwealth awarded a $10 million grant\u2014the second largest state award for a single site\u2014to prepare the 27-acre former Frog, Switch & Manufacturing complex for mixed-use redevelopment. The award builds on EPA\u2019s no cost TBA, which completed a Phase II environmental assessment and follow-up sampling at this legacy foundry site with more than 40 buildings, subsurface pits, and an onsite landfill.\u00a0<\/p>\n
(From left) Jill Gaito, Principal, Gaito & Associates, speaks with EPA R3 Administrator Amy Van Blarcom-Lackey and EPA R3 Land and Chemical Redevelopment Director Dave Campbell about the 27-acre former Frog, Switch & Manufacturing complex redevelopment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
New Kensington (Westmoreland County): The 70-acre Advanced Manufacturing Park is being transformed into an innovation focused hub. Leveraging a $1 million EPA Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund award to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, a loan to the Regional Industrial Development Corporation supported extensive hazardous substance cleanup. The site received a certificate of completion in early 2025 and is now moving forward with new manufacturing expected to create jobs and grow the local tax base.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nationally, since the Brownfields Program began, EPA and its partners have delivered nearly $42 billion in cleanup and redevelopment and supported more than 220,500 jobs. More than 21,000 individuals have completed Brownfields Job Training, with over 16,000 graduates placed in environmental careers\u2014building the local workforce needed to sustain this work. To learn more about EPA\u2019s Brownfields Program here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n EPA’s Mid-Atlantic Region serves Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and seven federally recognized Tribes.\u202fFollow EPA Region 3 on\u202fInstagram<\/a>,\u202fX<\/a>,\u202fand\u202fFacebook<\/a>.\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n