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Brownfields 2007
Grant Fact Sheet
Osceola County
Brownfield
Redevelopment
Authority, Ml
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 Osceola County Brownfield Redevelopment
Authority was selected to receive two brownfields
assessment grants. Osceola County (population
23,750) is a 566-square-mile rural county that devel-
oped around the lumber industry. With the arrival of
the railroad, the county's industrial base expanded to
include oil, natural gas, and manufacturing. Changing
markets, new technologies, and globalization signifi-
cantly impacted the local economy. Manufacturers
Assessment Grants
$200,000 for hazardous substances
$200,000 for petroleum
EPA has selected the Osceola County Brownfield
Redevelopment Authority for two brownfields
assessment grants. Hazardous substances grant
funds will be used to identify and inventory sites,
perform up to 12 Phase I and up to ten Phase II
environmental site assessments, and conduct
community outreach activities. Funds also will be
used to perform up to six cultural resources
assessments based on the documented tribal
history of the county. Petroleum grant funds will
be used to perform the same tasks at sites with
potential petroleum contamination.
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 5 Brownfields Team
312-886-7576
http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields/
Grant Recipient: Osceola County Brownfield
Redevelopment Authority, MI
231-832-7397
The information presented in this fact sheet comes
from the grant proposal; EPA cannot attest to the
accuracy of this information. The cooperative
agreement for the grant has not yet been negoti-
ated. Therefore, activities described in this fact
sheet are subject to change.
closed their doors, moved, and laid off employees.
They left behind vacant, blighted, and underused
facilities. There are 40 underground storage tank and
39 hazardous waste sites in the county. Potential
contamination from these sites poses a threat to the
area groundwater, the county's only source of drinking
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5105T)
EPA560-F-07-134
May 2007
www.epa.gov/brownfields
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water. The unemployment rate in the county is 7.3
percent. The median household income is 24 percent
lower than the state median. Assessment of
brownfields will assist the county in promoting
redevelopment that is necessary to relieve pressures
for greenfield development and preserve natural
resources.
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