5 o T> Brownfields 2006 Grant Fact Sheet Allegheny County Redevelopment Authority, PA EPA Brownfields Program EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, commu- nities, and other stakeholders 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 Allegheny County Redevelopment Authority was selected to receive a brownfields assessment grant. Until the 1970s, the economy of Allegheny County (population 1,282,000) relied on heavy industry and raw material and residual management operations. Its river corridors, along the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio Rivers, were lined with steelmaking opera- tions and other industries that relied on the rivers and adjacent rail lines for the transportation of raw materi- als and finished products. The demise of these indus- tries left the county with many abandoned and Assessment Grant $200,000 for petroleum EPA has selected the Allegheny County Redevel- opment Authority for a brownfields assessment grant. Petroleum grant funds will be used to conduct up to five Phase I and II environmental site assessments around the county. The final number of assessments will depend upon the size and complexity of the selected 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: Allegheny County Redevelop- ment Authority, PA 412-350-1080 The cooperative agreement for this grant has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change. underutilized properties and declining populations and incomes. The area's poverty rate is three times the national average. Unemployment in communities with significant brownfields is as high as 15 percent. Approximately 16 percent of county residents are minorities, and that percentage increases to more than 45 in the heavily impacted former industrial communi- ties. Assessment and eventual cleanup of the county's brownfields sites will help eliminate the concerns that discourage investment in the impacted communities. Redevelopment of the properties is expected to create thousands of jobs that would be accessible to low- and middle-income families in the area. Solid Waste and Emergency Response (5105T) EPA 560-F-06-051 May 2006 www.epa.gov/brownfields ------- |