United States
                      Environmental
                      Protection Agency
                      Washington, D.C. 20460
  Solid Waste
  and Emergency
  Response (5105)
EPA500-F-01-238
April 2001
www.epa.gov/brownfields/
 <>EPA      Brownfields  Cleanup
                       Revolving  Loan  Fund  Pilot
                          Montachusett Regional Planning Commission, MA
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 brownfieldis 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 $250,000 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, brownfields cleanup revolving
loan fund (BCRLF) programs (each funded up to $1,000,000 over five years),  to provide financial assistance 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

The Montachusett Region is a politically recognized
subdivision of  the  State of Massachusetts and is
composed of 22 member communities located in the
center of the State. The Region is plagued by pockets
of poverty with high unemployment and low per capita
income.  Much of the area is composed of urbanized
mill  towns, remnants of once-booming paper  and
furniture industries, where plant closings have created
high rates of unemployment. Between 1989 and 1998,
the  region lost  192 firms and 1,116 jobs. In some
places, job loss rates were as high as 39%.

The  Montachusett  Region Planning  Commission
(MRPC) has identified  782 brownfields  sites,  and
prioritized  28  for  redevelopment.  The  EPA
Brownfields Site Assessment program has facilitated
nine Phase I site assessments. MRPC  also plans to
undertake five more  Phase I site assessments and two
Phase II  assessments.

BCRLF OBJECTIVES

The goal of the Montachusett Region is to provide gap
financing for cleanup of brownfields sites. In doing so,
the  Region hopes  to: (1) expand local  economic
capacity through the reuse of non- or under-productive
PILOT SNAPSHOT
                         Date of Announcement:
                         April 2001

                         Amount: $500,000

                         BCRLF Target Area:
                         Urban and industrialized
                         communities and
                         municipalities with
                         abandoned and
                         underutilized "mill sites"
Montachusett Region, Massachusetts
Contacts:

Economic Development Director
        MRPC
     (978) 343-0646
   Region 1 Brownfields
      Coordinator
     (617)918-1210
      Visit the EPA Region 1 Brownfields web site at:
         www.epa.gov/region01/brownfields

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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brownfields  sites;  (2)  expand  job   availability,
affordable housing, and recreation opportunities for
residents; and (3) expand the Region's economic tax
base. Implicit is the desire to protect the environment
and improve the quality of  life  for the Region's
residents.

Potential borrowers include the Town of Athol. The
Town may utilize the BCRLF to  clean up a vacant
manufacturing lot located next to the  Town Hall and
Public Library. The cleanup would allow for expansion
of the library and a municipal parking lot.   Other
potential recipients include the City of Gardner, for the
cleanup of two sites - one for the construction of a new
library  and  another   for  an  affordable  housing
development; and the Town of Groton to clean up the
West Groton Mill.
FUND STRUCTURE AND OPERATIONS

The MRPC is the cooperative agreement recipient,
and will serve as the lead agency and fund manager.
The   MRPC  will   engage  the  Massachusetts
Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to
serve as site manager.

LEVERAGING OTHER RESOURCES

The region will submit an application to HUD for
Community  Development Block Grants  for the
removal of unsafe structures on brownfields sites. It
will also utilize the Massachusetts Brownfields Act,
and the State Economic Development Incentives
Program (EDIP) to  offer  potential  developers
funding and  tax cuts.  Environmental insurance
resources are also available to cap potential cost
overruns.
                                                      Use of BCRLF Pilot funds must be in accordance with
                                                      CERCLA, and all CERCLA restrictions on use of
                                                     funding also apply to BCRLF funds.
Brownfields Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund Pilot
Apri/2001	
                            Montachusett Region, MA
                                 EPA 500-F-01-238

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