SB, HI C3 Brownfields 2003 Grant Fact Sheet Passaic County, NJ EPA Brownfields Program EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, commu- nities, and other stakeholders in economic development to work together to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield site is real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. On January 11, 2002, President George W. Bush signed into law the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act. Under the Brownfields Law, EPA provides financial assistance to eligible applicants through four competitive grant programs: assessment grants, revolving loan fund grants, cleanup grants, and job training grants. Addi- tionally, funding support is provided to state and tribal response programs through a separate mechanism. Community Description Passaic County was selected to receive an assessment grant. Passaic County (population 489,000) includes 16 municipalities. Fifteen of these have populations under 100,000. Two municipalities with poverty levels ex- ceeding 21 percent are in state-designated Enterprise Zones. No systematic inventory of brownfields sites has been compiled in the county, but the state has estimated that Passaic County contains more than 600 potentially contaminated sites, primarily in the county's older industrial cities. The county has created a Brownfields Commission with broad representation to guide its brownfields program. The identification and assessment of brownfields will promote economic activity on properties currently outside the tax base and will minimize public health concerns associated with contaminated sites. Assessment Grant $200,000 for hazardous substances EPA has selected Passaic County for a brownfields assessment grant. The county plans to inventory brownfield sites within its 16 munici- palities that are contaminated with hazardous substances, conduct assessments at abandoned sites, and involve the community in land-use decisions and sustainable redevelopment planning. Contacts For further information, including specific grant contacts, additional grant information, brownfields news and events, and publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at: www.epa.gov/brownfields. EPA Region 2 Brownfields Team 212-637-4314 http://www.epa.gov/region02/superfund/ brownfields/ Grant Recipient: Passaic County, NJ 973-881-4427 Prior to receipt of these funds in fiscal year 2003, Passaic County has not received brownfields grant funding. The cooperative agreement for this grant has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change. Solid Waste and Emergency Response (5105T) EPA500-F-03-158 June 2003 www.epa.gov/brownfields ------- |