RE: Use of Urban history to identify Brownfields -Reply

["Bruce Klafter" <bklafter@orrick.com>]

Re: old phone books, etc. - many consultants will review
reverse directories that are available; they can look up the
address and find out what businesses or individuals were
located there (up to a certain point in time).

You should also know there is a small subset of consultants
who specialize in historical research related to Superfund
sites. They will consult local libraries, historical archives,
etc. in a search for additional information about a site,
primarily to identify additional responsible parties.  This can
also be done by a private investigator, but these
specialized firms are quite capable.  

The next step often involves corporate history since many
companies have merged, been sold, changed names and
so on.  The level of inquiry is always dictated by the need:
are the "stakes" high (i.e. lots of contamination), are
additional financial resources needed, etc.