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                            Assessment
                            Nye  County, NV
BACKGROUND

EPA  has  selected Nye  County for a Brownfields
Assessment Pilot. The county also was selected to receive
additional funding for assessments atbrownfields properties
to be used for greenspace purposes. Nye County, located
east of Death Valley National Park in the south-central
portion of Nevada, is the largest county in Nevada and the
third largest county in the United States, covering 18,155
square miles. The county (population 40,490) has targeted
the towns of Tonopah, Amargosa Valley, Beatty, Round
Mountain, Gabbs, and Pahrump-Johnnie for this Pilot. Nye
County has suffered the boom-bust effects of mineral
mining and defense and energy-related activities over the
years, and is trying to stimulate a pattern of diverse, stable
economic growth on a limited amount of land (the federal
government owns 98 percent of the land in the county).
One possible target site for the Pilot is a former gold mine
that could be redeveloped as a solar power generation
facility. The county also has identified a site along the
Amargosa River where there is considerable community
support for greenspace preservation and the establishment
of a community center.

While the populations of two of the towns have grown,
growth in the remaining towns has declined due mainly to
the slump in the mining industry and the loss of projects
sponsored by the Department of Defense. Between 1992
and 1998,Nye County lost 9,560 jobs. The unemployment
rate in the Pilot area is 6.2 percent, and nearly 13 percent
of residents live in poverty. Approximately 21 percent of
the population are minorities, primarily Hispanic.

OBJECTIVES

The county's objective is to prepare properties in the
target communities for reuse, thereby increasing the
amount ofland attractive for new commercial and industrial
development. To accomplish this objective, the Pilot will
fund outreach to the community and potential stakeholders,
   PILOT SNAPSHOT
    Nye County, Nevada
Date of Announcement:
May 2002


Amount: $200,000


Greenspace: $50,000

Profile: The Pilot targets six
municipalities within  Nye
County. Sites to be assessed
will be selected for their potential
to sustain commercial and
industrial development.
   Contacts:
   Nye County
   DepartmentofNatural
   Resourcesand Federal
   Facilities
   (775)727-7727
Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA Region 9
(415)972-3249
        Visit the EPA Region 9 Brownfields web site at:
     http://www.epa.gov/regon09/waste/brown/index.html

      For furtherinformation, 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

create  an inventory  and prioritize properties for
redevelopment within the targettownships, conduct Phase
I environmental site assessments of up to six high-priority
sites, and conduct Phase II assessments as needed.

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ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACTIVITIES

Activities planned as part of the Pilot include:

• Implementing a community outreach plan;

• Identifying and prioritizing sites for assessment;

• Conducting up  to six Phase  I  environmental  site
  assessments, plus additional Phase  II assessments as
  needed; and

• Evaluating the assessment program  at different stages
  to evaluate its effectiveness at meeting its goals.

The cooperative agreement forthis Pilot has notyetbeen negotiated; therefore,
activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.
                                                             Solid Waste            EPA 500-F-02-063
                                                             and Emergency        May 2002
                                                             Response (5105)       www.epa.gov/brownfields/

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