Green Finance Approaches to Soil Remediation

The report examines seven international examples of soil remediation financing, ranging from federal programs like the US Superfund to private equity funds like Ginkgo Fund I. It identifies that while the 'polluter pays' principle is a common legal baseline, its implementation varies, often requiring public grants or innovative funds to bridge funding gaps. Key findings highlight that urban sites with high redevelopment potential are more likely to attract private investment, whereas rural or highly toxic sites often rely on general fiscal revenue or industry-wide voluntary funds. The report concludes that there is no uniform approach to financing, and the choice of instrument must be fit-for-purpose based on the site's socioeconomic context and revenue potential.

• The US Superfund program has successfully remediated numerous large-scale sites through a centralized EPA procedure, but it is criticized for being "centralized, bureaucratic and inflexible" and for generating a "massive amount of litigation" due to its strict and retroactive liability regime.
• The Clean Michigan Initiative (CMI) used municipal bonds to provide a medium-term funding solution for brownfields and waterfronts, but it failed as a long-term solution, leaving approximately 7,300 contaminated sites without sufficient funding by 2017.
• The Bonfol project in Switzerland demonstrated that the polluter pays principle can be fully implemented even for extremely expensive projects, with commercial entities funding the total cost of approximately CHF 380 million.
• In the Flekkefjord project in Norway, public funding from the Norwegian Environmental Agency (NEA) acted as a catalyst to encourage private contributions, although the polluters' share remained low at approximately 5% because many original polluting companies no longer existed.
• The Hempel case in Norway established a significant legal precedent where the Norwegian Supreme Court "transferred obligations from a daughter company to its parent company," effectively piercing the corporate veil to enforce the polluter pays principle.
• Denmark's Oil Industry’s Remediation Fund (OM) successfully remediated 3,438 sites over 23 years using a voluntary industry-wide fee based on petrol sales, which avoided litigation and created a cost-effective implementation of the polluter pays principle.
• The Ginkgo Fund I demonstrated that soil remediation can be profitable for private investors when focusing on small to middle-sized brownfields in attractive urban areas with high redevelopment potential, utilizing equity investments from public financial institutions to mobilize private capital.
• Financing for soil remediation is highly case-specific; urban areas more easily mobilize private funding because remediation increases future revenue streams, while long-term large-scale remediation often requires stable funding from special taxes or general fiscal revenue.

APA

Furuseth, I. S., Kammler, K. J., Chen, W., Platjouw, F. M., Lin, Y., Jartun, M., Larssen, T., & Larsen, M. L. (2018). Green Finance Approaches to Soil Remediation. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/green-finance-soil-remediation-international.pdf

Chicago

Furuseth, Ingvild Skumlien, Karl Jakob Kammler, Wenting Chen, Froukje Maria Platjouw, Yan Lin, Morten Jartun, Thorjørn Larssen, and Mathias Lund Larsen. Green Finance Approaches to Soil Remediation. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2018. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/green-finance-soil-remediation-international.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Furuseth |first1=Ingvild Skumlien |last2=Kammler |first2=Karl Jakob |last3=Chen |first3=Wenting |last4=Platjouw |first4=Froukje Maria |last5=Lin |first5=Yan |last6=Jartun |first6=Morten |last7=Larssen |first7=Thorjørn |last8=Larsen |first8=Mathias Lund |title=Green Finance Approaches to Soil Remediation |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=June 2018 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/green-finance-soil-remediation-international.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{furuseth2018green, author = {Furuseth, Ingvild Skumlien and Kammler, Karl Jakob and Chen, Wenting and Platjouw, Froukje Maria and Lin, Yan and Jartun, Morten and Larssen, Thorjørn and Larsen, Mathias Lund}, title = {{Green Finance Approaches to Soil Remediation}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2018}, month = jun, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/green-finance-soil-remediation-international.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }