Brownfields

We work with communities to remediate vacant, polluted lands (commonly known as “brownfields”) through phytoremediation to then spur more sustainable redevelopment. A key component of our brownfields work involves Delta equipping communities with the tools they need as they redevelop closed—or closing—coal power plants.

Publications

Brownfields Marketability Scoring Tool

August 19, 2020

Brownfield Mapping and Reuse Analysis in Little Village, Chicago

April 23, 2020

Shenango Reimagined

March 1, 2020

Resilient Communities Stakeholder Assessment

May 3, 2019

Economic Benefit Targeting For Development Overview

May 3, 2019

Economic Benefit Targeting For Development Tool

May 3, 2019

Coal Redevelopment Roadmap

May 1, 2018

Coal in the US: Policy Responses to an Industry in Decline

March 1, 2018

In Transition: Stories from Coal Plant Communities

August 18, 2017

Community-Based Prioritization of a Brownfield Site Inventory for Redevelopment

August 23, 2016

Projects

Economic Equity via Community-Led Redevelopment in Little Village, a Chicago Prize Finalist Project

Economic Equity via Community-Led Redevelopment in Little Village, a Chicago Prize Finalist Project

Through a robust partnership between the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization and Delta Institute, our initiative will create a new community hub, called the Centro de Solidaridad Mi Villita, to provide 100,000+ Chicagoans with the means to create a robust local economy based on solidarity and equity. This project was a Finalist for the first Chicago Prize, the $10M award competition held in 2020 by the Pritzker Traubert Foundation. Although we did not win the competition, we remain committed to a sustainable future for Little Village.

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Reimagining the Shenango Coke Plant Site outside Pittsburgh, PA

Reimagining the Shenango Coke Plant Site outside Pittsburgh, PA

Delta Institute has worked with numerous communities who are faced with a closed--or closing--coal power plant. These sites have unique needs for redevelopment, ranging from environmental remediation to replacement of lost tax revenue and jobs. Delta facilitated a coalition of community groups located outside Pittsburgh, PA to create Guiding Principles for sustainable redevelopment of the closed Shenango Coke Plant property located on Neville Island, located on the Ohio River.

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Phytoremediating Vacant Industrial Land in Gary, Indiana

Phytoremediating Vacant Industrial Land in Gary, Indiana

With our partners, Delta Institute is planting hybrid poplar trees on the former Bear Brand Hosiery Plant, a five-acre brownfield site with petroleum contamination that lies within the Grand Calumet Area of Concern in Gary, Indiana. The hybrid poplars are expected to grow rapidly and absorb and break-down the petroleum contamination within the soil. The planted trees will take up significant amounts of water, reducing stormwater run-off into Lake Michigan and returning this vacant industrial site to productive use.

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