What is a Bluefield?

A Bluefield is real estate or land with physical water resources itself or access to a navigable body of water such as a river, sea, or ocean—either directly or via canal or port access. While some portion of a Bluefield may be underwater continuously, it may also qualify by virtue of temporary water conditions such as seasonal rain, snow melt or stormwater flooding—whether the result of natural or man-made conditions. Bluefields often have definitive water access or riparian rights. Some Bluefields can support commercial and industrial uses, while others merely provide simple enjoyment for owners, tenants, guests and provide habitat for nature. Bluefields typically provide natural habitat to local flora and fauna and perform some other ecological services (which could also classify the property as an Ecofield).

Many Bluefields are commonly referred to as “waterfront” property abutting a body of water such as a lake, river, canal, or ocean. And in the 2018 BUILD Act, Congress defined “waterfront” property for purposes of the U.S. EPA brownfield grant application process as “a site adjacent to a body of water or a federally designated flood plain.”

In the wake of years of record setting weather events, including Iowa’s epic slow-motion 2008 flood caused by a rainfall event that lasted for nearly an entire month as well as Houston’s third annual 500-year flood event in 2017 that dropped more rain in a shorter period of time than scientists thought possible, bluefield development is a priority focus in from coastal areas to the inland planes and in both urban areas and rural areas. Today many Bluefields in rural and urban areas are being developed with the principles of Green Infrastructure in mind, to ameliorate growing costs of flooding and stormwater flow—and to develop additional greenspace and community amenity area. In coastal and low-lying areas, bluefield infrastructure work is surging with some areas investing heavily is hardening coastal defense. While other low-lying coastal communities are working on strategic retreats.

See also this EPA Manual: How-To ‘Climate Smart’ Brownfield Manual Incorporates Adaptation and Mitigation Strategies to Counter Climate Change

See also: Future-Proofing Against a Hotter, Wetter Horizon Will Require a Huge Surge of Bluefield Development

Use the Bluefield tag on every Basic Listing for free, and discover all the tags you can use to best describe the conditions on your property in the BL Taxonomy. See how to tag your property or project as a Bluefield by learning How to List or how to Get Started.