News Releases from Region 04

EPA Awards $500,000 in Brownfields Grants to Cleanup and Revitalize Communities in Southeast Tennessee

(Atlanta - May 28, 2015) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today that it plans to award the Southeast Tennessee Development District with a brownfields grant for new investments to provide communities with funding necessary to clean and redevelop contaminated properties, boost local economies and create jobs while protecting human health.

EPA's Brownfields grants provide resources early which is critical for the success of communities' ability to leverage additional partnerships and resources. The community leaders-- represented by local governments, states, tribes, quasi-governmental organizations, and non-profit entities-- have demonstrated strong partnerships and plan to leverage the EPA grants with other public-private investments. They use an inclusive process to help spur the redevelopment of vacant, former manufacturing and commercial sites for broader revitalization in their downtowns. This results in a transformed economy and environment while addressing poverty and economic distress.

"Brownfield sites-- because of their locations and associated infrastructure advantages-- are community assets and a key component of the Obama Administration's efforts to provide tools to sustainably revitalize communities and foster economic development," said Mathy Stanislaus, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. "These communities have demonstrated a plan to leverage their grants and partnerships to achieve economic and environmental revitalization to meet their needs for jobs. The grants will help transform brownfield sites, such as former manufacturing and mill sites, into productive end uses which directly benefit community residents and create opportunities including increased housing options, recreational spaces, and jobs."

EPA's grant awards support both urban and rural communities in their efforts to address their brownfields concerns. More than fifty-five percent of the communities selected are cities and towns with populations of 100,000 or less, of which forty-four percent are very small rural communities with populations of 10,000 or less. The Southeast Tennessee Development District will use the community-wide hazardous substances and petroleum coalition grant funds to perform up to 40 Phase I and up to four Phase II environmental site assessments. Grant funds also will be used to develop a Geographic Information System brownfields database that includes site maps, and to conduct cleanup planning and community outreach activities. Coalition partners are the Counties of Bledsoe, Bradley, Grundy, Hamilton, McMinn, Meigs, Polk, Rhea, and Sequatchie; the Cities of Cleveland, South Pittsburg, and Whitwell; and the Town of Jasper.

This latest funding advances EPA's broader commitment to making a visible difference in communities that focuses on better coordinating federal investments to help environmentally overburdened, underserved, and economically distressed communities address local priorities. Communities selected this year demonstrate a high level of preparedness to undertake specific projects as they have firm commitments of leveraged funds to move projects forward.

Since the inception of the EPA's Brownfields Program in 1995, cumulative brownfield program investments have leveraged more than $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 EPA brownfield dollar expended. These investments have resulted in approximately 105,942 jobs nationwide. EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, communities, and other stakeholders to work together to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields sites.

More information on EPA's brownfields:

Grants by state: http://cfpub.epa.gov/bf_factsheets/ Connect with EPA Region 4 on Facebook: www.facebook.com/eparegion4
And on Twitter: @EPASoutheast