BROWNFIELDS_IDEM_IN is a point shapefile that contains brownfield locations in Indiana, provided by personnel of Indiana Department of Environmental Management, Office of Land Quality (IDEM, OLQ) as of January 4, 2005 and subsequently updated on April 25, 2005, July 27, 2006, January 24, 2007, June 4, 2009, April 16, 2010, June 25, 2013, and February 25, 2015. The data set provided by IDEM was in an Esri geodatabase format and the feature class was named BROWNFIELDS. The following is excerpted from the metadata provided by IDEM, OLQ for the source shapefile BROWNFIELDS: Indiana defines a brownfield site as a parcel of real estate that is abandoned or inactive; or may not be operated at its appropriate use; and on which expansion, redevelopment, or reuse is complicated; because of the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, a contaminant, petroleum, or a petroleum product that poses a risk to human health and the environment. As our undeveloped land continues to disappear, we recognize the need to redevelop and reuse land that may have viable buildings and infrastructure already present. The existence of buildings and infrastructure, and access to transportation resources can lower the costs to a potential developer. Redevelopment of brownfields properties benefits communities by rejuvenating vacant buildings, increasing the tax base and reducing blight. Because the potential environmental liability at these properties is unknown, prospective purchasers are unwilling to assume the risk of undetermined potential cleanup costs. Thus, the properties remain idle. In response to these issues the IDEM, in conjunction with the Indiana Development Finance Authority,and the Indiana Department of Commerce offers financial assistance in the form of grants and low-interest loans for site assessment, remediation, and demolition. The IDEM provides assistance by performing technical oversight and review.
