Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. letter to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, January 10, 1996

Congress of tfje Unite!) States J)ou«c of Stpreoentatibee ©Hashington, DC 20515-2002 JZcSzz™ «яяв. January 10, 1996 U. S. Environmental Protection Agency р»м<1епа.мо2 OSWER Outreach & Special Projects Staff (5101) 401 M Street, SW Washington, D. C. 20460 Dear Sir or Madam: This purpose of this letter is to express my strong support for Baltimore County’s Brownfields Demonstration Pilot Program grant application. Like many older jurisdictions, Baltimore County has a large number of vacant and underutilized industrial properties. Additionally, strong prohibitions have been put in place to deter the spread of suburban development into rural areas and to protect the Chesapeake Bay. Both of these factors have produced a shortage of undeveloped greenflelds which may be used in economic development activities. Through its proposed Brownfields Demonstration Pilot Program, Baltimore County officials are proactively seeeking to remedy this problem by identifying and reclaiming older sites with significant economic development potential. If this application is selected for funding, Baltimore County will break new ground in directly helping businesses to understand the brownfields issue and in encouraging businesses to take advantage of existing programs to facilitate redevelopment of older industrial sites. The project will help to demonstrate how good brownfields policy can be as an effective economic development tool. I strongly encourage EPA to accept Baltimore County’s request for funding under this grant program. Sincerely, Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. Member of Congress