brownfield
BROWN-feeld
/ˈbraʊn.fiːld/
A former industrial or commercial site where future reuse is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination.
Redeveloping brownfields prevents open farmland expansion by reusing abandoned city land, though soil cleanup is required.
The story behind the word. Coined in the early 1990s by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to contrast heavily polluted, abandoned industrial properties with untouched 'greenfield' sites, establishing economic tax credits to clean up cities.
Word relationships
- industrial wasteland: Industrial wasteland is a descriptive, informal phrase, whereas brownfield is a formal legal and planning classification eligible for environmental cleanup grants.
- greenfield: Pristine, undeveloped rural or natural land that has never suffered industrial development or pollution.
Commonly confused with
- superfund site: Superfund sites are severely contaminated hazardous waste sites regulated under federal emergency laws, while brownfields are less severely polluted urban sites.
Collocations
- brownfield redevelopment
- brownfield site
- brownfield cleanup
- brownfield remediation
Example sentences
- "The old factory site was a contaminated brownfield before the city remediated the toxic soil and built a public park." Land Restoration
- "Brownfields are real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance." Environmental Policy
Memory hook
Brown field = dirty industrial soil; Green field = fresh grass. Dirty industrial soil ready for a clean start.
When not to use
Do not use for unpolluted green parks, virgin countryside, or new suburban housing tracts.
Fun facts
- London's iconic 2012 Olympic Park was constructed entirely on a 500-acre brownfield site that had been polluted by 200 years of chemical manufacturing.
Related words
Explore more words
blight, remediate, remediation, landfill, arable, densification
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