United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5101)
EPA 500-F-00-088
May 2000
www.epa.gov/brownfields/
Brownfields Assessment
Demonstration Pilot
Crow Nation, Montana
Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5105)
Quick Reference Fact Sheet
EPA's Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative is designed to empower states, communities, and other
stakeholders in economic redevelopment to work together in a timely manner to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and
sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield is a site, or portion thereof, that has actual or perceived contamination and
an active potential for redevelopment or reuse. EPA is funding: assessment demonstration pilot programs (each funded
up to $200,000 over two years), to assess brownfields sites and to test cleanup and redevelopment models; job training
pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years), to provide training for residents of communities affected
by brownfields to facilitate cleanup of brownfields sites and prepare trainees for future employment in the environmental
field; and, cleanup revolving loan fund programs (each funded up to $500,000 over five years) to capitalize loan funds
to make loans for the environmental cleanup of brownfields. These pilot programs are intended to provide EPA, states,
tribes, municipalities, and communities with useful information and strategies as they continue to seek new methods
to promote a unified approach to site assessment, environmental cleanup, and redevelopment.
BACKGROUND
EPA has selected the Crow Nation for a Brownfields
Pilot. The Crow Indian Reservation is located in
southcentral Montana and includes portions of
Yellowstone and Big Horn counties. The reservation
proper, which includes 3,521 square miles, has a
distinct rural character and is home to several small
communities, including Crow Agency, Garryowen,
Lodge Grass, Wyola, Fort Smith, St. Xavier, and
Pryor. Population on the reservation is estimated at
10,000 (approximately 8,000 tribal members and 2,000
non-tribal members), and unemployment on the
reservation is estimated at 70 percent in the summer
months and 80 percent in the winter months.
The Big Horn Carpet Mill Redevelopment Initiative—
the focus of the Crow Nation Pilot—is located wholly
on tribally owned trustlands, located in Crow Agency.
The Big Horn Carpet Mill commenced production in
April 1968. Known contaminants used at the site
included chemical dyes, glues, and mixtures of
chemicals used to manufacture and treat carpets, as
well as cleaning solvents for the machinery in the
factory. Additionally, there may have been other
chemicals used at the site that may presently pose
health threats. Since the site was abandoned in 1974,
PILOT SNAPSHOT
Date of Announcement:
May 2000
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Crow Nation
targets the Big Horn Carpet
Mill in Crow Agency for site
assessment, cleanup, and
redevelopment.
CrowNation, Montana
Contacts:
Crow Agency
Natural Resources
(406)638-2601
Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA-Region 8
(406)457-5018
Visit the EPA Region 8 Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/region08/land_waste/bfhome/bfhome.html
For further information, including specific Pilot contacts,
additional Pilot information, brownfields news and events, and
publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
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it has been a nuisance and a threat to public health.
There are no fences surrounding the immediate
property, allowing children to play unsupervised in
and around the building.
OBJECTIVES
The Crow Nation' s goal is to conduct investigations
and sites assessments to determine the composition
of the contaminants on the targeted property and
the extent of their migration into the surrounding
soil and groundwater. This will allow the Nation to
develop plans for converting the property into a
productive community-based facility that would
house the Crow Vocational Technical Center and
the Crow Arts and Crafts Heritage Center,
furthering education and arts and crafts and
minimizing unemployment on the reservation.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACTIVITIES
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
• Conducting Phase I and II assessments in order
to identify all hazardous substances in the soil,
surface water, and groundwater at the Big Horn
Carpet Mill;
• Assessing human health and environmental risks;
• Soliciting community input and support;
• Conducting public awareness/outreach activities;
• Developing an effective, affordable, and sustainable
long-term remedial design, including establishing
culturally appropriate plans for redevelopment and
reuse of the Big Horn Carpet Mill property;
• Identifying potential funding sources; and
• Developing estimates for cleanup costs for the Big
Horn Carpet Mill property.
The cooperative agreementforthis Pilot has not yet been negotiated;
therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.
Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot Crow Nation, Montana
May2000 EPA 500-F-00-088
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