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 Brownfields  2005
 Grant  Fact Sheet
      Middletown,  CT
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 City of Middletown was selected to receive  a
brownfields cleanup grant. The city's 46,918 residents
include a disproportionate share of Middlesex County's
low-income residents. The areas around the city's
older industrial areas have an unemployment rate of
more than 15 percent, and pockets of very low-income
residents. The target cleanup area, the former Portland
Chemical Works property, is near low-income and
minority neighborhoods, and several elementary and
middle schools. Redevelopment of the property will
utilize the available rail spur to create a trans-loading
facility, which will increase the use of the rail line and
reduce dependence on truck traffic. Reuse will also
encourage economic development, create jobs, and
                      Cleanup Grant
                      $200,000 for hazardous substances
                      EPA has selected the City of Middletown for a
                      brownfields cleanup grant. Grant funds will be
                      used at the former Portland Chemical Works
                      property, which was occupied by a chemical
                      distributor and abandoned in 1992. Environmental
                      concerns included buried drums of waste, dis-
                      carded drums, a leaching field for chemical
                      discharges, and a dry well/holding tank. Grant
                      funds will be used to remove contaminated soil
                      and buried waste, and conduct community
                      outreach.
                      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 1 Brownfields Team
                      617-918-1221
                      http://www.epa.gov/region01/brownfields/
                      Grant Recipient: City of Middletown, CT
                      860-344-3425

                      The cooperative agreement for this grant has not
                      yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described
                      in this fact sheet are subject to change.
                   provide assurance to the community that the property
                   is environmentally safe.
                                                 Solid Waste and
                                                 Emergency Response
                                                 (5105T)
                                            EPA 560-F-05-005
                                            May 2005
                                            www.epa.gov/brownfields

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