2019 - April Hot Topics Event at CCNY |
Knowledge exchange between CCNY faculty and students and BCONE, NYCBP, and LSRPA
Angelo Lampousis, Ph.D of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at the City College of New York (CCNY) knows his undergraduate students: they turned out in force during their spring break to hear about hot topics in brownfields and site remediation in the NY metropolitan area. Dr. Lampousis also knew that the 3 professional organizations each have scholarship programs and a real desire to reach students to share with them the options in the exciting environmental professions in the region.
The session held on April 23, 2019, at CCNY’s beautiful campus was an energetic gathering of students, LSRPs, laboratory professionals, city government professionals, attorneys, and environmental consultants. It was informal and very interactive and was sponsored by Alpha Analytical. The attendees from CCNY and the 3 organizations were joined for about an hour by John Manzo, ASTM instructor, and students from an Environmental Site Assessment course he was teaching across the hall. He told ASTM headquarters that “I know everyone benefited from attending the brownfield event yesterday, including myself.”
The hot topics session was moderated by Sue Boyle of GEI Consultants; she serves as the executive director of each of the organizations so she was up to date on the hottest topics. Topics covered included PFOAs; the use of fill at redevelopment sites and its movement within the region; NYC’s new greenhouse gas bill and the retrofitting of older buildings; Opportunity Zones and the newly proposed IRS regulations as well as updates on other brownfield incentives offered in the northeastern US; area wide development of brownfield sites—whether you call them BOAs or BDA, or collaborative cooperatives; and environmental justice and gentrification concerns.
What came out of the morning session? The organization of a webinar on Opportunity Zones put on by the NYCBP and BCONE one week after the CCNY breakfast: it was the first webinar presented by either group and the rapid registration process validated the interest in the topic. It will be posted to each organization’s website for members-only. In addition, a dozen or more students volunteered to assist LSRPA, BCONE and the NYCBP with upcoming events. Dr. Lampousis and Ms. Boyle are already comparing 2019 and 2020 calendars to schedule the next hot topics sessions. And, last but not least, we captured the energy of the day in photos!