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                           Brownfields
                           Assessment
                           Kanawha  County,  WV
BACKGROUND

EPA has selected Kanawha County for a Brownfields
Assessment Pilot. Kanawha County is located in the
Appalachian region of west central West Virginia. The
Pilottargets brownfields in communities within the Kelly' s
Creek watershed, which includes the towns of Monarch,
Shrewsbury, Cedar Grove, Ward, Mammoth, Glasgow,
and Riverside. Under the Pilot, the county will work with
the Kelly's Creek Communities Association (KCCA) to
target potential brownfields in these communities, where
the perception of contamination from former coal mining
is driving away residents and stifling new business and
industrial investment. The county plans to use the West
Virginia Abandoned Mine Land Inventory, water quality
data provided by the state, community input, and other data
sources to prepare an inventory and prioritize sites to be
assessed.

From the early 1800s, communities within the Kelly's
Creek watershed (population 5,870) thrived as the coal
mining industry and other businesses provided steadyjobs
and adequate incomes. The post World War II decline of
the area's coal industry and related businesses left the
watershed communities with no economic stability and
residents with no transferable job skills. Currently, the
unemployment rate in these communities averages  11
percent, and per capita income is $9,036. Twenty percent
of the residents live below the poverty level.

OBJECTIVES

The county's objective is to take the first steps toward
making economic recovery feasible in the Kelly's Creek
watershed. The Pilothopes to accomplish this objective by
actively engaging the community in a sustained cooperative
effort to create an inventory of brownfields throughoutthe
24-square-mile watershed area; prioritize these sites using
measures such as public safety, redevelopment potential,
   PILOT SNAPSHOT
    Kanawha County,
    West Virginia
Date of Announcement:
May 2002

Amount: $200,000

Profile: This Pilot will target
sites in the 24-squaremile Kelly's
Creek watershed, which is
economically distressed due to
declines in the coal industry
since World War II.
   Contacts:

   Kanawha County
   (304)357-0101
Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA Region 3
(215)814-3129
        Visit the EPA Region 3 Brownfields web site at:
       http://www.epa.gov/reg3hwmd/bfs/index.htm

      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:
             www.epa.gov/brownfields

and economic feasibility; conduct Phase I and Phase II
assessments on priority sites; and develop a strategic plan
for cleanup and redevelopment of the priority sites that is
acceptable to all project participants.

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ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACTIVITIES

Activities planned as part of the Pilot include:

• Creating an inventory and prioritizing brownfields in the
  watershed;

• Performing Phase I and Phase II assessments of priority
  sites; and

• Engaging local community members in all phases of the
  Pilot.
The cooperative agreement forthis Pilot has notyetbeen negotiated; therefore,
activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.
                                                             Solid Waste            EPA 500-F-02-060
                                                             and Emergency        May 2002
                                                             Response (5105)       www.epa.gov/brownfields/

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