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Brownfields 2005
Grant Fact Sheet
Essex 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. 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. The
brownfields job training grants provide residents of
communities impacted by brownfields with the skills
and training needed to effectively gain employment in
assessment and cleanup activities associated with
brownfield redevelopment and environmental
remediation. Additionally, funding support is provided to
state and tribal response programs through a separate
mechanism.
Community Description
Essex County was selected to receive a job training
grant. All communities in the county (population
793,633) will be included in this grant. The county-wide
poverty rate is 15.6 percent, and the unemployment
rate is 7.3 percent. These are significantly above state
Job Training Grant
$200,000
EPA has selected Essex County for a job training
grant. The county plans to train 40 students and
place at least 30 graduates in entry-level environ-
mental technician jobs. Graduates will be tracked
for one year. The 144-hour training program will
be conducted by the New Jersey Institute of
Technology (NJIT). Courses will include OSHA
health and safety training for hazardous waste
workers; introduction to environmental science;
site assessment, investigation, and remediation
techniques, including protocols for sampling,
measurement, and instrumentation; and treatment
technologies. Students will be recruited primarily
from among Essex County communities impacted
by brownfields. The Workforce Investment Board
of Essex County and the One Stop Career Center
of Essex County will assist with placing graduates
in environmental jobs.
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: Essex County, NJ
973-395-8400
The cooperative agreement for this grant has not
yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described
in this fact sheet are subject to change.
averages. Minority populations predominate within
entrenched high-poverty areas, including the poor,
urban core of Newark and surrounding urban rim
communities. The majority of the 700 sites on the
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5105T)
EPA 560-F-05-252
May 2005
www.epa.gov/brownfields
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county's list of known contaminated sites are located
within these areas. The county's population density is
the second highest in New Jersey, one of the country's
most densely populated states. This density under-
scores the need to redevelop brownfields. Essex
County and several municipalities within the county are
spearheading major rehabilitation projects, and private
sector interest and activity in local brownfields is
strong. The State of New Jersey has estimated that
demand for environmental technicians will increase 18
percent by 2010.
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