SEFft United States Environmental Protection Agency Office of Solid Waste And Emergency Response (5401G) EPA 510-F-00-012 October 2000 www.epa.gov Underground Storage Tanks And Brownfields Sites NEW MEXICO/Albuquerque EPA's USTfields Initiative will fund pilots in Brownfields communities to assess and clean up petroleum contamination from federally-regulated underground storage tanks (USTs) at idle or abandoned commercial properties. Petroleum contamination is generally excluded from coverage under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and is not, therefore, covered under EPA's Brownfields Program. In its USTfields Pilot Program, EPA's Office of Underground Storage Tanks (OUST) has selected 10 state/local pilots in which the state will partner with a local area to assess and/or clean up two or more petroleum-impacted underground storage tank sites. Each pilot state will receive up to $100,000 of LUST Trust funds to be used to assess and clean up the local area sites. This will help to ready them for future reuse. BACKGROUND EPA selected the State of New Mexico as an USTfields Pilot. New Mexico has targeted two sites for assessment and cleanup in the City of Albuquerque that would most benefit from this program. The sites contain underground storage tanks which may be releasing petroleum products. The New Mexico Department of Environment has deemed these sites to be potential threats to public health and safety and the environment as well as public nuisances. The city is a recipient of a Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot and a Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund grant. OBJECTIVES The State of New Mexico will use USTfields pilot funds to perform site assessments and risk-based evaluations to determine if cleanup actions are necessary at abandoned underground storage tank sites. Once the sites have been cleaned up, the City of Albuquerque will work to turn them into useful commercial properties. Region 6 Albuquerque, New Mexico Applicant Name: New Mexico Local Partner: City of Albuquerque Date of Selection: October2000 Profile: The state will work with the city to assess and clean up former petroleum sites that pose a threat to public health and the environment and that create an obstacle to future reuse. Contacts: EPA Region 6 Christine Cherrett (214) 665-7342 New Mexico Environment Department Anna Richards (505) 827-0158 For further information, go to www.epa.gov/oust/ EPA USTfields INITIATIVE EPA and the state have not yet negotiated the Cooperative Agreement to fund this pilot; therefore, activities are subject to change. ------- |