Brownfield Redevelopment in the Jewelry District
Sustainable Recommendations: I-195 Corridor ________________ Current Plans: Jewelry District & Brown University
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Recommendations for Sustainable Brownfields Redevelopment in the Jewelry District |
I-195 Corridor Redevelopment of the I-195 corridor is going to have one of the largest impacts on the Jewelry District. Currently, the corridor serves as a barrier between the Jewelry District and Downtown Providence. Redeveloping the corridor is a perfect opportunity to link Downtown Providence and the Jewelry District once again. However, there are specific characteristics of the corridor that need to be taken into serious consideration when redeveloping the area in order to make it sustainable. These characteristics include possible contamination from decades of vehicle use, and the barrier that the corridor serves as. Our class recommends the following sustainable practices and concepts to address these characteristics and ensure that another brownfield will not result from the redevelopment of the corridor, and that a healthy and appropriate environment will be created: Identify Any Contaminants & Remove Them All vehicles pollute, many vehicles leak various types of chemical fluids, accidents cause chemicals spills, and highways are difficult to clean up. Although we did not find studies or data that reveal any specific contamination that could be found in the I-195 corridor due to vehicle use, studies have been conducted on adjacent property to the I-195 corridor and general highway contamination which support our assumption that the corridor is contaminated with many chemicals due to vehicle use. Below is a very short list of the possible chemicals which have been found from most highways in the United States in either in the soil, groundwater, or on the surface of highway infrastructure:
*Data provided by Indicators of Environmental Impacts of Transportation (EPA 1996) continued... |