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Brownfields 2008
Grant Fact Sheet
Huntington, WV
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 this 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. Additionally, funding support is
provided to state and tribal response programs through
a separate mechanism.
Community Description
The City of Huntington was selected to receive a
brownfields assessment grant. Located along the Ohio
River in western West Virginia, Huntington (population
49,007) was founded in 1871 as the western terminus
of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway. With the city's
economy centered on the coal and chemical industries,
Huntington's population grew to nearly 100,000 by the
1950s. As the coal industry declined, the city lost much
of its industrial base. The loss of industry and popula-
tion has left Huntington with many vacant and
underused properties. Today, Huntington is a federally
designated Empowerment Zone/Enterprise Community
facing challenges from years of high unemployment
and poverty rates and low income levels. The number
of city residents living below the poverty level is 24.7
Assessment Grant
$200,000 for hazardous substances
EPA has selected the City of Huntington for a
brownfields assessment grant. Hazardous sub-
stances grant funds will be used to inventory and
prioritize brownfields. Grant funds also will be used
to conduct up to 24 Phase I and up to five Phase II
environmental site assessments and to support
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 3 Brownfields Team
215-814-3129
http://www.epa.gov/reg3hwmd/bfs
Grant Recipient: City of Huntington, WV
304-696-4486
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.
percent, twice the national average, and the median
household income is 55 percent of the national median.
Assessment of brownfields is expected to provide the
city with information to help expedite the redevelop-
ment of these sites.
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5105T)
EPA 560-F-08-060
April 2008
www.epa.gov/brownfields
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