$11M in Brownfields Cleanup Funds Awarded

Manufacturing redevelopment and urban agriculture are among the projects that will receive supplemental EPA funding — the agency has made available $11 million — to help clean up contaminated brownfields properties.

The funds have been awarded to 31 grantees already working to clean up and redevelop brownfields. The agency expects the projects to create more than 700 jobs and leverage more than $57 million in cleanup and redevelopment.

The supplemental grants range in funding from about $200,000 to $500,000 with an average grant award of $350,000.

The funds will support an array of cleanup and redevelopment projects across the US. For example:

• In New York, NY, funds will be used to carry out two projects in partnership with a nonprofit that will build more than 500 affordable housing units and create 320 temporary jobs and 46 permanent jobs.
• The state of Vermont will make a loan to complete cleanup of a site in St. Albans that is targeted for manufacturing redevelopment.
• In Kansas City, Mo., a loan will be used to clean-up the Westport Middle School and redevelop the site into residential housing and substantial greenspace with urban garden and urban farming components.
• The state of Illinois’ EPA will use funds to partner with a nonprofit to bring urban agriculture to an Environmental Justice community in Chicago.

There are about 450,000 abandoned and contaminated sites in the US.