United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response(5101)
EPA500-F-99-126
June 1999
www.epa.gov/brownfields/
Brownfields Assessment
Demonstration Pilot
Neville Township, PA
Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5101)
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 brownfieldstofacilitatecleanupofbrownfieldssites and preparetrainees for future employmentintheenvironmental
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 Township of Neville for a
Brownfields Pilot. Neville Township is an island on
the Ohio River, located in southwestern Pennsylvania.
The island is 5 miles long and four-tenths of a mile
wide, with a population of 1,273 and a 9.1 percent
poverty rate. Although there are more than 150
businesses on the island, with the eastern end
containing heavy industry, the township's tax base has
declined 40 percent in recent years, and it continues
to decline.
The island has 400 acres of brownfields, about one-
third of the island's land. These brownfields are a
result of a decline in the township's historical production
of military vehicles and steel, scrap recycling, shipping
and distribution. While the island's location, flat
topography, riverfront access and sound infrastructure
make it ideal for industrial and commercial
redevelopment, issues regarding real or perceived
contamination have hindered redevelopment to more
productive uses. The island is heavily industrialized
on its east side and has a small residential area on the
west side.
PILOTSNAPSHOT
Date of Announcement:
June 1999
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Pilot targets
brownfields on Neville Island
on the Ohio River.
Neville Township, Pennsylvania
Contacts:
Township of Neville
(412)264-3442
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/brownfld/hmpage1.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:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
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OBJECTIVES
The Pilot's objective is to improve health and safety
and spur economic activity in Neville by completing
environmental assessments on several of the island's
brownfields sites. Cleanup and redevelopment of
these brownfields are a part of the town's
comprehensive redevelopment plan that includes
rezoning the island, which the town anticipates will
improve the town's quality of life and its economic
health. The new zoning will facilitate a transition from
heavy industry on the eastern end to light industry and
distribution in the middle, with retail, residential, and
recreational uses on the island's western end.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS ANDACTIVITIES
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
• Completing an inventory of the island's brownfields;
• Performing Phase I environmental assessments on
approximately five sites;
• Conducting Phase II environmental assessments on
three to four brownfields;
• Designing cleanup plans for assessed sites; and
• Educating and involving the community in
assessment, cleanup, and redevelopment activities.
The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been negotiated;
therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.
Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot Neville Township, Pennsylvania
June 1999 EPA500-F-99-126
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