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 Brownfields  2007

  Grant  Fact  Sheet

Rockingham Planning

         Commission,

       Southeast  New

           Hampshire

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 Rockingham Planning Commission (RPC) was
selected to receive a brownfields assessment grant.
Located in southeastern New Hampshire, the RPC
region (population 200,243) consists of 27 municipali-
ties in Rockingham County. The state has identified
ten brownfield sites and more than 1,800 potential
brownfield sites in the region. The  target area includes
six communities that have been heavily impacted by
the presence of brownfield sites. These communities
 Assessment Grant
 $200,000 for hazardous substances
 EPA has selected the Rockingham Planning
 Commission (RPC) for a brownfields assessment
 grant. Hazardous substances grant funds will be
 used to prepare an inventory of potential
 brownfield sites in the region and conduct up to
 five Phase I environmental site assessments.
 Grant funds also will be used to conduct Phase II
 environmental site assessments, as necessary, 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 1 Brownfields Team
 617-918-1424
 http://www.epa.gov/region01/brownfields/
 Grant Recipient: Rockingham Planning Commis-
 sion, NH
 603-778-0885
 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.
(Salem, Portsmouth, Exeter, Hampton, Seabrook, and
Windham) generally have higher unemployment and
poverty rates than those of the county. The majority of
these communities developed around industrial mills
that were built in the 1800s. Most of these mills are
now abandoned. The RPC region is the fastest growing
region in New Hampshire, and the presence of
brownfield sites deters redevelopment of already
urbanized land, contributing to sprawl and the develop-
ment of scarce farm, forest, and other open land.
                                               Solid Waste and
                                               Emergency Response
                                               (5105T)
                       EPA560-F-07-146
                       May 2007
                       www.epa.gov/brownfields

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Brownfields assessment is expected to spur
brownfields reuse and in the process, support eco-
nomic development, job growth, an expanded regional
tax base, and sprawl reduction.

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