E.P.A. Chooses 171 Communities for New Brownfield Investment Grants to Boost Local Economies, Leverage Job Creation/Funding will revitalize communities by cleaning up and redeveloping contaminated sites

WASHINGTON - The E.P.A. (EPA) announced today that 171 communities will gain 264 grants totaling $67 million in brownfields backing to clean and redevelop contaminated properties, boost local economies and leverage jobs while protecting public health and the environment. The FY14 Brownfields Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup (ARC) grants will give communities and businesses a chance to return economic stability to under-served and economically disadvantaged neighborhoods through the assessment and clean-up of abandoned industrial and commercial properties, places where environmental cleanups and new jobs are most needed.

"Not only are these funds protecting the environment and public health by helping communities clean up blighted toxic waste sites, there are new job growth opportunities for local economies to leverage through these investments," said Gina McCarthy, E.P.A. Administrator. "With cities looking at how to combat the impacts of climate change, it's more important than ever for communities to innovate new ways to retrofit formerly polluted sites into assets for the community."

This year several plans were selected to address sites identified in their Brownfields Area Wide Planning projects, including Lowell, Mass., which will focus on revitalizing an Industrial Park and Toledo, OH, which will clean up an old transmission plant. Other selected plans include future uses such as, river walks, a sports park, manufacturing and light industrial use, an eagle sanctuary facility, and a technology corridor.

A total of approximately $23.5 million is going to communities that have been impacted by plant closures. Other selected recipients include tribes and communities in 44 states across the country; and over 50 of the grants are going to HUD-DOT-EPA grant recipient communities.

Since the inception of the EPA's Brownfields Plan in 1995, cumulative brownfield Plan investments have leveraged in excess of $21 billion from a variety of public and private sources for cleanup and redevelopment activities. This equates to an average of $17.79 leveraged per E.P.A. brownfield dollar expended. These investments have resulted in approximately 93,000 jobs nationwide. These plans demonstrate the positive impact a small investment of federal brownfields backing can have on community revitalization through leveraging jobs, producing clean energy, and providing recreation opportunities for surrounding neighborhoods. EPA's Brownfields Plan empowers states, communities, and other stakeholders to work together to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields sites.

More information on brownfields grants by state: http://cfpub.epa.gov/bf_factsheets/

More information on EPA's brownfields: Plan Accomplishments http://epa.gov/brownfields/overview/bf-monthly-report.html

There are currently no comments for this story. Be the first to add a comment!
Click here to add a comment about this story.