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r0 Hoopa Valley Serves as a Model for
g EPA's Tribal Brownfields
Assessment Pilots and Grants
s
Tribal Pilots and Grants
"ince the first EPA Brownfields Pilot was awarded to a federally
recognized tribe in 1996, 27 Pilots and 9 grants, totaling more than $5.8
million, have been awarded to help tribal communities restore brownfields
to full economic viability. Although brownfields are generally perceived to
be an urban problem, rural areas including many tribal reservations have
their own share of these properties. In rural areas, often a single, large
brownfield can dominate the landscape and have profound effects on the
local environment. Because available land for development is sometimes
more abundant in tribal areas, pressure to redevelop existing brownfields
may not be as great. Without strong incentives, and without the required
knowledge, experience, or financial resources, many tribes have had difficulty
addressing the myriad of issues associated with brownfields restoration.
But through Brownfields Pilots and grants, tribes are finding opportunities
to convert brownfields from liabilities into opportunities.
Tribes are unique among Brownfields Pilots in that federally recognized
tribes are seen as domestic, dependent nations under the protection of the
United States, with sovereign powers over their members and territory. In
addition, Tribal Councils often need to offer approval as a project moves
through each stage of its activities. With many tribal environmental, economic
development, and planning offices inexperienced in brownfields, significant
time and resources may be needed to formulate plans that are feasible for
both the tribe and EPA.
The Hoopa Valley Reservation in Humboldt County, California, the state's
largest Indian Reservation, is serving as a model for EPA's Tribal Brownfields
Pilots. With assistance from the Assessment Pilot awarded to the tribe,
Hoopa Valley is transforming the 83-acre former Cal-Pac sawmill into new
housing for tribal residents, an environmental training facility, and a modular
manufacturing facility that creates pre-fab concrete walls for use in building
hotels, condominiums, and other large-scale construction projects. The
manufacturing facility and other businesses on the site (which potentially
include pharmaceutical and tobacco companies that have shown interest)
are expected to create as many as 150 new jobs. The Tribal California
Conservation Corps is now enrolling students for the environmental training
program; the training facility will occupy 20 acres of the site. Students will
learn environmental conservation, forestry, fishing, and other environmental
trades. Open to all Native Americans, students will earn college credits as
well as assistance toward higher education. Up to 250 students will be able
to attend at a time.
continued ^
JUST THE FACTS:
• Using its Assessment Pilot award, the
Hoopa Valley tribe is transforming an
8 3-acre former sawmill site into an
environmental training facility and a
new manufacturing facility.
In North Dakota, the Turtle Mountain
Band of Chippewa Brownfields Pilot is
preparing the site of a former state
hospital for recreational and tourism
reuses with assistance from EPA, the
state, and other partners.
In Arizona, the Navajo Nation
Brownfields Pilot has completed three
cleanups on a former particle board
manufacturing and sawmill site, with
help from the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission and EPA Region 9.
Because available land for
development is sometimes more
abundant in tribal areas, pressure to
redevelop existing brownfields may not
be as great. Without strong incentives,
and without the required knowledge,
experience, or financial resources,
many tribes have had difficulty
addressing the myriad of issues
associated with brownfields
restoration.
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With no remaining land in the valley available for redevelopment, restoration of the former Cal-Pac site
became a very high priority for the Hoopa Valley Tribe. Environmental assessments were conducted on
the site by the Brownfields Pilot using innovative, field-based sampling techniques to complete
the process much faster than would be possible with lab-based methods. The
assessments revealed that 20 acres of the site were fairly clean, while the remaining
area contained more extensive contamination. Based on assessment findings,
the tribe re-zoned the site as industrial, and as an incentive to an interested
manufacturer, offered a portion of the property as part of a $1 per year, 25-
year lease. The incoming manufacturer will also take advantage of tax
incentives resulting from the site's designation as aHistorically Underutilized
Business Zone by the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic
Development Administration.
CONTACTS
For more information contact
EPA Region 8 (303) 312-6312
EPA Region 9 (415) 972-3247
Or visit EPA's Brownfields Web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
In addition to the unique lease agreement, Hoopa Valley's Brownfields Pilot
provided other innovative incentives for developers and investors to help restore
other targeted sites. As sovereign entities, tribes do not typically offer businesses
the tax incentives often allowed by the state; to compensate, the Hoopa Valley
Tribe adapted tribal business codes that encouraged businesses to stay in California
through freedom from some state taxes and other disincentives. With the help of the
Hoopa Valley Tribal Credit Department, the Tribe also established and funded a revolving loan fund to
provide up to $ 150,000 in low-interest cleanup loans for each business established on tribal land.
To keep the community apprised of the Cal-Pac site's status, the Hoopa Valley Tribe's radio station and
newspaper were used to disseminate information about Pilot activities. In addition, a series of stakeholder
meetings were held with local residents, including a kickoff workshop/ conference
as the project was getting underway. This outreach and education of local
residents and the resulting momentum generated toward the site's
transformation led to eight single-family housing units being constructed
adjacent to the Cal-Pac site, five funded by the U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and three by incoming
homeowners.
A vandalized building on Turtle Mountain
Band of Chippewa Tribal land.
Other Tribal Brownfields Assessment Pilots
that have reported impressive progress
include the Ely Shoshone Tribe in eastern
Nevada, which has emphasized community
involvement in its efforts to restore a 15-acre
abandoned landfill; the Turtle Mountain Band
of Chippewa Pilot in North Dakota, which is
working to prepare the site of a former state hospital for recreational and
tourism reuses, with assistance from EPA, the state, and other partners;
and the Navajo Nation in Arizona, which has completed cleanup of a former
particle board manufacturing and sawmill site, with help from the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission and EPA Region 9. Together, the 27 tribes that have
received Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot grants are demonstrating
to themselves and to other tribes that brownfields restoration is not only possible; it is greatly beneficial.
Using a variety of approaches, including adapting new tribal business codes, unprecedented partnerships
with county and state governments, innovative, field-based environmental assessments, bilingual translators,
and "lessons learned" from other Pilots, these Tribal Pilots are now restoring their brownfields. For more
information on any of EPA's Brownfields Assessment Pilots awarded to tribal entities, contact EPA's
Office of Brownfields Cleanup and Redevelopment at (202) 566-2777'.
The former state hospital on Turtle Mountain
Band of Chippewa Tribal land.
Brownfields Success Story
Tribal Pilots
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105)
EPA-500-F-04-001
October 2003
www. epa. gov/brownfields/
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