Brownfields Redevelopment  Toolbox

 STEP 5: Site Management 

STEP 5: Site Management (sub-directory)

Monitoring

The working group involved in each brownfield project (the Municipal Team, coordinator, developer and consultants) should monitor and manage the progress of the project, both during and after the cleanup and development. 

Each brownfield redevelopment project should be monitored to:

  • Establish municipal due diligence
  • Provide strong public relations and consultation opportunities
  • Collect data for future business cases and marketing of other brownfield projects
  • Address potential health, safety and environmental concerns
  • Demonstrate municipal commitment to the project

Monitoring Stages

The Municipal Brownfields Coordinator should make it a habit of performing site visits to monitor and assist in the management of the site. To develop a good reputation of encouraging brownfield redevelopment, it is better for the municipality to play the role of an advisor and aid to the developer, than to play the role of a regulator.

Stages at which monitoring should occur include:
  • Prior to any work being done – provides background levels
  • During remediation – provides changes to contamination levels and progress of cleanup
  • During redevelopment and construction – for possible migration of contaminants
  • After site closure or project completion – for possible migration of contaminants and to assess acceptable levels of contaminant degradation where natural attenuation methods were used
Monitoring Scenarios and Techniques  

Long-term monitoring is usually required on a site if cleanup occurs to site-specific Risk Assessment values. Risk Assessments determine areas of concern that must be cleaned up to guidelines in order for the redevelopment to continue and areas where long term natural attenuation, phytoremediation and bioremediation techniques may be utilized along with preventative measures to remove and/or avoid pathways of exposure to human and environmental health. These are also associated with providing the most cost effective technologies/techniques in the development of the site. 

Typical scenarios that a Risk Assessment would require monitoring include:
  • Type of contamination found on-site;
  • Background levels of contamination (natural or artificial);
  • Adjacent sites (migration from or to neighbouring properties);
  • Remediation technology utilized; and
  • Containment technology or engineered control utilized to manage contamination on-site.
Techniques for monitoring of contamination and possible migration include:
  • Monitoring wells - groundwater sampling
  • Surface water sampling
  • Sewage and wastewater discharges
  • Air emissions/particulate monitoring (during cleanup)
  • Site visits (by Municipal Team)
During Redevelopment and Construction, monitoring should include:
  • Photography – eye level and aerial (during and after construction)
  • Noise levels (during construction)
  • Air emissions and particulate monitoring (during construction)
  • Sampling of sewage and wastewater discharges (during and after construction)
  • Transportation and arterial effects – traffic congestion, road degradation, etc. (during and after construction)
  • Sampling of materials and debris used on-site and sent to landfills (during construction)
  • Site visits and tours by Municipal Team or Coordinator (during construction)
Monitoring is usually performed by the developer and consultant under contract and not necessarily by a municipality. The reports should be made available to the municipal coordinator for review. The municipality may also establish and perform monitoring to maintain municipal responsibility and demonstrate due diligence.