30 o \ o Brownfields 2005 Grant Fact Sheet Petaluma, CA 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 Petaluma was selected to receive a brownfields assessment grant. Located in Sonoma County, Petaluma (population 54,548) was founded in 1852 as a historic river town that became recognized as a center for agriculture, shipping, and manufactur- ing. Since then, it has also supported a broad mix of uses, including trade, commercial businesses, and housing. Hundreds of environmentally-impacted sites have been identified in the city, including fuel service and storage stations, tanneries, soap-making facilities, poultry processing facilities, coal gasification plants, and dry cleaners. The presence of blighted properties hinders redevelopment and directly affects the popula- tion. There have been many cases of hazardous Assessment Grant $200,000 for hazardous substances EPA has selected the City of Petaluma for a brownfields assessment grant. Grant funds will be used to develop a community-wide inventory of potentially contaminated sites. Funds also will be used to perform up to seven Phase I assess- ments and up to three Phase II assessments, and to conduct community outreach activities. 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 9 Brownfields Team 415-972-3188 http://www.epa.gov/region09/waste/brown/ index.html Grant Recipient: City of Petaluma, CA 707-778-4555 The cooperative agreement for this grant has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change. materials impacting drinking wells, which recently led the Sonoma County Environmental Health Department to hire a specialist to address this issue. The Petaluma River, the heart of downtown, is affected daily by the many contaminated sites situated along and near its banks. Brownfields redevelopment will attract new jobs, promote new development, enhance the down- town and river areas, and eliminate adverse physical and economic conditions. Solid Waste and Emergency Response (5105T) EPA560-F-05-142 May 2005 www.epa.gov/brownfields ------- |