5
o
T>
Brownfields 2006
Grant Fact Sheet
West-to-West
Coalition, Inc.,
Monongahela River
Valley, 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 West-to-West Coalition, Inc., was selected to
receive a brownfields assessment grant. Located in
southwestern Pennsylvania, the Coalition represents
21 small communities (total population 134,000)
within the Monongahela River Valley. For years, the
banks along both sides of the river were lined with
steel-making operations and other heavy industries
that relied on the river and adjacent rail lines for the
transport of raw materials and finished products. With
Assessment Grant
$200,000 for petroleum
EPA has selected the West-to-West Coalition,
Inc., for a brownfields assessment grant. Petro-
leum grant funds will be used to conduct commu-
nity outreach activities and perform from six to
eight Phase I and II environmental site assess-
ments throughout the Monongahela River Valley.
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: West-to-West Coalition, Inc., PA
412-469-1132
The cooperative agreement for this grant has not
yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described
in this fact sheet are subject to change.
the collapse of the steel industry in the late 1900s, the
region lost half of its manufacturing base and 54 percent
of its manufacturing jobs. The real property tax base and
population in the Valley plummeted by 75 percent.
While minorities account for 19 percent of the total area
population, they account for 45 percent of the popula-
tion in the former industrial communities. Two such
communities, the Cities of Duquesne and McKeesport,
and three Valley boroughs are federally designated
Enterprise Communities. The Coalition has catalogued
more than 100 brownfields, affecting more than 500
acres. Assessment, eventual cleanup, and redevelopment
of these properties will help the region turn the corner
on environmental justice issues, address health and
environmental threats, and, by returning the brownfields
to beneficial use, bring jobs and tax revenues to the
communities of the Valley.
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5105T)
EPA 560-F-06-059
May 2006
www.epa.gov/brownfields
------- |