E.P.A. provides $200K to the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe to advance the revitalization of Old Housing Authority Building property

Funds part of $54 million to clean up and redevelop Brownfields sites across the country

(Denver, Colo. - May 28, 2015) The E.P.A. (EPA) has awarded the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe $200K in Brownfields grant backing to clean up environmental contamination at the Old Housing Authority Building property in the center of the Lower Brule Community. Today's announcement is among 243 E.P.A. grant investments totaling $54.3 million to 147 communities across the U.S. These grants will provide communities with backing necessary to assess, clean and redevelop contaminated properties, boost local economies and leverage jobs while protecting public health and the environment.

The Lower Brule Sioux Tribe will use the E.P.A. Brownfields grant to demolish the abandoned building and remove asbestos, lead-based paint, mold, and other hazardous materials from the site, which sits in a prominent location in the Lower Brule Community. Once cleanup is complete, the Tribe has suggested to use the location as the location of a new Boys and Girls Club for Reservation youth.

"EPA Brownfields grants are opening doors by helping tribal communities transform blighted properties into public and economic assets," said E.P.A. regional administrator, Shaun McGrath. "These investments will address contamination and create new opportunities for people to live, play, and do business."

There are an estimated 450,000 abandoned and contaminated sites in the United States. EPA's Brownfields plan empowers states, communities, and other stakeholders to work together to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse these brownfields sites. Since the inception of the plan in 1995, cumulative brownfield plan investments have leveraged in excess of $22 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 105,942 jobs nationwide.

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

More Brownfields information:
Plan http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
Success Stories http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/success/index.htm

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