Economic
Benefits of Sediment Remediation
The
Northeast-Midwest Institute in conjunction with Dr. John Braden from
the University of
Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign, and others, has released a report highlighting
results of a two-year study on the economic benefits of sediment
remediation in Great Lakes Areas of Concern. Specifically, the
report details how much residential property values near the
Buffalo River, New York, and Sheboygan
River,
Wisconsin, could
increase if contamination in the rivers is eliminated. Click here to
read the report.
Contacts: John Braden with
the University of
Illinois
(217-333-5501) or Nicole Mays
with the Northeast-Midwest Institute (202-584-3378) for more
information.
Financing Great Lakes Ecosystem Restoration
The Northeast-Midwest
Institute has posted its study of how existing institutions within
the Great
Lakes region can finance
ecosystem restoration.
The report pays particular attention to clean water state
revolving funds, water and sewer authorities, port authorities, and
state environmental bonds.
The study is the first deliverable on a financing project
supported by the Great Lakes Protection Fund. Click here to read the report
and its appendices. Contact: Evans Paull at the
Northeast-Midwest Institute (202/464-4004).
Brownfields Tax Provisions Extended and
Expanded
The “tax extenders” bill
that Congress recently approved included a provision to extend the
“Brownfields Expensing Deduction” through 2007 and to expand the
program to include petroleum cleanups. The brownfields tax
expensing law, Section 198 of the Tax Code, makes cleanup
expenditures deductible in the year that the expenses were
incurred. This approach, originally adopted in the Community
Renewal Act of 2000, treats cleanup of “Hazardous Substances” as a
“repair” to the land, rather than a “capital expenditure” that must
be depreciated over time. For more information
about the credit, see: http://www.epa.gov/swerosps/bf/bftaxinc.htm
The Institute Has
Moved
