News Releases from Region 03
EPA Brownfields Funding Announced for West Virginia
Funding for brownfields assessment and cleanup included in President Trump’s Budget
WASHINGTON (May 31, 2017) – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency selected 172 communities across the country including communities in West Virginia that will receive funding for brownfields site revitalization to help local governments redevelop vacant and unused properties, transforming communities and local economies.
“EPA is committed to working with communities to redevelop Brownfields sites which have plagued their neighborhoods. EPA’s Assessment and Cleanup grants target communities that are economically disadvantaged and include places where environmental cleanup and new jobs are most needed,” said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. “These grants leverage considerable infrastructure and other investments, improving local economies and creating an environment where jobs can grow. I am very pleased the President’s budget recognizes the importance of these grants by providing continued funding for this important program.”
The following six communities and organizations in West Virginia will receive funding:
- Town of Bath in Morgan County: $100,000 grant to support cleanup of contaminated soil at a former railroad yard known as the Railroad Depot Complex at 107 Williams Street and Route 552 in Berkeley Springs.
- Brooke-Hancock Regional Planning and Development Council: Two grants totaling $600,000 to support property assessment at former industrial properties in Brooke and Hancock counties. (Adjacent properties in Jefferson County, Ohio also may be included.)
- City of Thomas in Tucker County: $200,000 grant to assess sites in the city’s historic commercial downtown, riverfront property, and adjacent residential neighborhoods.
- Upshur County: $200,000 grant to support cleanup work and community involvement activities at a former industrial site in Selbyville that is now used by the Upshur County Youth Camp.
- City of Vienna in Wood County: $200,000 to support cleanup work and community involvement work at the former Johns Manville site at 2905 2nd Avenue that was used to treat cut wood in the late 19th century.
- West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection: Two grants totaling $300,000 to conduct site assessments, and prepare cleanup plans for former industrial sites in the towns of Rainelle and Rupert in Greenbrier County.
View the list of the FY 2017 applicants selected for funding here: https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/brownfields-list-fy17-grants-selected-funding
Overview of the funds being announced today:
- $25 million to communities who are receiving assessment and cleanup funding for the first time
- $17.5 million of the assessment and cleanup funding will benefit small and rural communities with populations less than 10,000
- Recipients will each receive approximately $200,000 - $600,000 in funding to work on individual sites or several sites within their community
- These funds will provide communities with resources necessary to determine the extent of site contamination, remove environmental uncertainties and clean up contaminated properties where needed.
Studies have shown that residential property values near brownfields sites that are cleaned up increased between 5 and 15.2 percent and can increase property values within a one-mile radius of that site. A study analyzing data near 48 brownfields sites shows that an estimated $29 to $97 million in additional tax revenue was generated for local governments in a single year after cleanup. This is two to seven times more than the $12.4 million EPA contributed to those brownfields.
As of May 2017, more than 124,759 jobs and $24 billion of public and private funding has been leveraged as a result of assessment grants and other EPA Brownfields grants. On average, $16.11 was leveraged for each EPA Brownfields dollar and 8.5 jobs leveraged per $100,000 of EPA brownfields funds expended on assessment, cleanup, and revolving loan fund cooperative agreements
About EPA’s brownfields program: https://epa.gov/brownfields
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