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 Brownfields  2005

 Grant  Fact  Sheet

     Riverside Center

       for Innovation,

Allegheny County,  PA

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. Abrownfield 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
The Riverside Center for Innovation was selected to
receive two brownfields assessment grants. The
Center represents  seven Allegheny River Valley
communities (total population 54,669), collectively
known as the Allegheny River Towns Enterprise Zone
(ARTEZ). This zone consists of approximately 930
acres of land along the north bank of the river about 12
miles from Pittsburgh. The access to waterways, the
proximity to the region's other industries, and the rich
natural resources of this Western Pennsylvania region
made the steel manufacturing ARTEZ region an
industrial powerhouse. The end of the industrial age
                                   Assessment Grants
                                                                      Y
                                    $200,000 for hazardous substances
                                    $200,000 for petroleum
                                    EPA has selected the Riverside Center for Innova-
                                    tion for two brownfields assessment grants.
                                    Hazardous substances grant funds will be used to
                                    solicit community input, develop an inventory of
                                    sites, conduct approximately six Phase I and three
                                    Phase II site assessments, and develop cleanup
                                    plans for selected sites within seven communities
                                    along the lower Allegheny River Valley. Petroleum
                                    funds will be used to perform the same tasks at
                                    petroleum-contaminated sites.
                                    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 3 Brownfields Team
                                   215-814-3129
                                   http://www.epa.gov/reg3hwmd/bfs/index.htm
                                   Grant Recipient: Riverside Center for Innovation,
                                   PA
                                   412-322-3523
                                   The cooperative agreement for this grant has not
                                   yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described
                                   in this fact sheet are subject to change.
                                 left these communities saddled with dwindling and
                                 underemployed populations, and polluted, unusable
                                 lands. Since 1970, four of the seven towns have lost 35
                                 percent of their residents. Between 1990 and 2000,
                                 Allegheny County lost over 15 percent of its manufac-
                                 turing jobs, and lower-paying service jobs have been
                                 replacing higher-wage manufacturing ones. Assess-
                                 ment of brownfields will help the ARTEZ communities
                                 mitigate the human health and environmental threats
                                 posed by these sites, particularly to the more vulnerable
                                                Solid Waste and
                                                Emergency Response
                                                (5105T)
                                                         EPA 560-F-05-079
                                                         May 2005
                                                         www.epa.gov/brownfields

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populations. Brownfields redevelopment will add light
industrial, retail, office, residential, and recreation space
to the region, and help the towns maintain their history
and vitality.

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