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description:
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Brownfields are defined by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) as abandoned, idled, or underused industrial and commercial facilities where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination. The primary goals of Florida's Brownfields Redevelopment Act (Ch. 97-277, Laws of Florida, codified at ss. 376.77-.85, F.S.) are to reduce health and environmental hazards on existing commercial and industrial sites that are abandoned or underused due to these hazards and create financial and regulatory incentives to encourage redevelopment and voluntary cleanup of contaminated properties. A "brownfield area" means a contiguous area of one or more brownfield sites, some of which may not be contaminated, that has been designated as such by a local government resolution. Such areas may include all or portions of community redevelopment areas, enterprise zones, empowerment zones, other such designated economically deprived communities and areas, and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) designated brownfield pilot projects. This layer provides a polygon representation of the boundaries of these designated Brownfield Areas in Florida. |