United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5101)
EPA 500-F-00-175
May 2000
www.epa.gov/brownfields/
Brownfields Job Training
and Development
Demonstration Pilot
Middlesex Community College, Middletown, CT
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 Middlesex Community College for
a Brownfields Job Training and Development
Demonstration Pilot. Middlesex Community College' s
assessment pilot partners are the City of Middletown
and Town of Haddam. The Job Training Pilot will
focus on the City of Middletown's state Enterprise
Zone and the Connecticut River valley area between
Middletown and Haddam. The City of Middletown
(population 43,000) is located on the Connecticut
River 20 miles north of New Haven. The City of
Middletown's state Enterprise Zone is centered on its
North End community, which is economically
depressed and primarily minority. The North End
community's poverty rate is significantly higherthan
the county-wide average. The Town of Haddam
(population 7,200) is a rural town located in the lower
Connecticut River Valley five miles north of New
Haven. The Town lost half of its tax base and almost
30 percent of its population when the state
decommissioned the Connecticut Yankee Atomic
Power Plant in 1996.
Historically, the Connecticut River served as a
transportation corridor, with Middletown functioning
PILOT SNAPSHOT
Middletown,
Connecticut
Date of Announcement:
May 2000
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Pilot will train 30-40
participants as environmental
technicians. Students will be
recruited from unemployedorunder-
employed residents in the City of
Middletown and Town of Haddam.
The Pilot will be an integral part of
local efforts to revitalize the area's
greatest natural resource, the
Connecticut Rivervalley.
Contacts:
Middlesex Community College
(860)343-5880
Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA - Region 1
(617)918-1209
Visit the E PA Region 1 Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/region01/remed/brnfld/
Forfurther 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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as a major seaport. Neglect, pollution from upstream
factories, and erosion of stream banks have caused
significant deterioration of this resource. Use of the
river and access to the waterfront are limited due to
the construction of roads and railways. Efforts to
improve the quality of life and spur economic
development along the river have been hampered by
a lack of usable space and the potential for
contamination on the many brownfields along the
river. Cities and towns along the Connecticut River
are now trying to revitalize this natural resource
through redevelopment of brownfield sites. The
assessment pilots in Middletown and Haddam
currently are assessing a number of properties in the
river valley. Trained environmental technicians are
needed to support continued revitalization efforts.
TRAINING OBJECTIVES
Middlesex Community College plans to train 30-40
participants, achieve a 60-80 percent placement rate,
and support career placement of graduates for one
year after the training is completed. Participants will
be recruited from unemployed and under-employed
residents in the greater Middletown and Connecticut
River valley areas. The Pilot training program will
consist of 30 weeks of courses on the handling and
removal of hazardous substances, sampling, asbestos
and lead awareness, forklift operation, and OSHA
health and safety regulation and skills, including training
in the use of innovative assessment and cleanup
technologies. This program is designed to be the
lowest level of a tiered training and educational
program designed by the college specifically to address
brownfields.
Middlesex Community College' s training efforts will
be supported by organizations such as the Middlesex
County Chamber of Commerce, Middlesex County
Soil and Conservation District, North End Action
Team, and Marin Environmental. The community
college will offer day and evening sessions, as
necessary. Certifications will be offered in
environmental remediation, lead and asbestos
abatement, 40-hour OSHA health and safety,
hazardous materials first responder, and hazardous
materials technician. Mentors will be provided for all
participants.
ACTIVITIES
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
• Conducting outreach to recruit unemployed and
under-employed residents in the greater Middletown
and Connecticut River valley areas;
• Conducting brownfieldstechniciantraining,including
courses in the use of innovative assessment and
cleanup technologies; and
• Supporting career placement of students for one
year after the job training is completed.
The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been negotiated;
therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.
BrownfieldsJob Training and Development Demonstration Pilot
MayZOOO
Middlesex Community College, Middletown, Connecticut
EPA500-F-00-175
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