Brownfields are properties where redevelopment is complicated by real or suspected contamination — usually from a previous industrial or commercial use. They aren't as contaminated as Superfund sites (by definition, Superfund is for the worst of the worst), but they're contaminated enough that cleanup costs scare off conventional buyers.
The easiest way to think about it: Superfund is what the federal government cleans up because nobody else can. Brownfields are what private developers, cities, and states clean up — often with EPA grants and liability protection — because the land is valuable enough to redevelop once the contamination is addressed.
Many brownfields are former gas stations, dry cleaners, small factories, rail yards, and old auto-repair shops. If your city has a "grant-funded downtown revitalization," brownfield cleanup is usually part of it.
EPA tracks brownfield grants and cleanups in ACRES (Assessment, Cleanup and Redevelopment Exchange System), the successor to the older CERCLIS database. ACRES covers any brownfield that has received EPA grant funding — so it's a subset of all brownfields, but it's the most complete federal-level picture.
Coming soon: We're working on importing ACRES into PollutionLookup.com. When it lands, you'll be able to search brownfields by address alongside Superfund and TRI data, with the same map-based lookup. Until then, the EPA ACRES public portal is the best place to search: EPA Cleanups in My Community.
If you're trying to screen a specific property for contamination, start with our address search — it covers Superfund and TRI facilities, which catch most of the worst cases. For smaller historical contamination (old gas stations, dry cleaners), check with your state environmental agency's "Leaking Underground Storage Tank" (LUST) program and voluntary cleanup program records.