United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response(5101)
EPA500-F-99-074
May 1999
www.epa.gov/brownfields/
&EPA Brownfields Cleanup
Revolving Loan Fund Pilot
Hudson County, NJ
Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5101)
Quick Reference Fact Sheet
EPA's Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative is designed to empower states, communities, and other
stakeholders in economic redevelopment to work together in a timely manner to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and
sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield is a site, or portion thereof, that has actual or perceived contamination and
an active potential for redevelopment or reuse. EPA is funding: assessment demonstration pilot programs (each funded
upto $200,000 overtwo years), to assess brownfields sites and to test cleanup and redevelopment models;job training
pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years), to provide training for residents of communities affected
by brownfieldstofacilitatecleanupofbrownfieldssites and preparetrainees for future employmentintheenvironmental
field; and, cleanup revolving loan fund programs (each funded up to $500,000 over five years) to capitalize loan funds
to make loans for the environmental cleanup of brownfields. These pilot programs are intended to provide EPA, states,
tribes, municipalities, and communities with useful information and strategies as they continue to seek new methods
to promote a unified approach to site assessment, environmental cleanup, and redevelopment.
BACKGROUND
Hudson County, New Jersey is one of the most densely
populated areas in the United States. Based on the New
Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Known
Contaminated Sites list, an average of 15 sites per
square mile are estimated. Since the 1980s,
manufacturing j obs in Hudson County have decreased
by 47% and contributed to the rise in unemployment
and poverty levels. The economic effect has been felt
not only in the loss ofjobs, wages, and tax revenues but
also in the proliferation of abandoned industrial
properties. The County is a Brownfield Assessment
Pilot.
BCRLF OBJECTIVES
The objective of the Hudson County BCRLF is to
assist in cleaning up contaminated properties for
productive uses. The BCRLF will first be made
available to sites identified by the Brownfield
Assessment Pilot. The next tier of eligible sites include
those in smaller municipalities that are in the County
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)
consortium. The third tier will include those
municipalities that receive their own CDBG funds
(Jersey City, Bayonne, and Union City). The BCRLF
program will be used to assist communities in developing
PILOTSNAPSHOT
Date of Announcement:
May 25, 1999
Amount: $500,000
BCRLF Target Area:
Assessment pilot sites
and CDBG areas
Hudson County, New Jersey
Contacts:
Region 2 Brownfields
Coordinator
(212) 637-4314
Hudson County Division of
Housing and Community
Development
(201) 795-6186
Visit the EPA Region 2 Brownfields web site at:
www.epa.gov/r02earth/superfnd/brownfld/bfmainpg.htm
For further information, including specific Pilot contacts,
additional Pilot information, brownfields news and events, and
publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
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revitalization plans for identified brownfields sites;
enhance public understanding and participation in the
process; communicate the benefits and opportunities
of brownfields cleanup and redevelopment; and develop
a sustainable program.
FUNDSTRUCTUREANDOPERATIONS
Hudson County will serve as the lead agency and the
County will utilize the services of the Hudson County
Regional Health Commission as the site manager. The
Hudson County Economic Development Corporation,
which currently executes loans for the County' s CDBG-
funded economic development program, will serve as
fund manager.
LEVERAGING
The County will supplement the BCRLF with $250,000
in CDBGfunds over 5 years. In addition, the BCRLF
will coordinate with, leverage, and layer programs and
funds with a wide range of available funding sources,
including:
• Zero-interest loans to municipalities from the
Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund;
• Loans from the New Jersey Economic Development
Authority;
• Loans and grants from the Petroleum Underground
Storage Tank Remediation, Upgrade, and Closure
Fund;
• Urban and Rural Centers Unsafe Building Demolition
Bonds;
• Development of Urban Enterprise Zone projects to
assist revitalization; and
• Loans from the Jersey Economic Development
Authority Real Estate Development Program.
Other incentives available to promote cleanup and
redevelopment include:
• Environmental Opportunity Zone designations that
provide tax abatements to developers and investors;
and
• Developertaxincentivesunderthe 1998 Brownfields
and Contaminated Site Remediation Act.
Use of BCRLF Pilot funds must be in accordance with
CERCLA, andallCERCLA restrictions on use of funding
also apply to BCRLF funds.
Brownfields Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund Pilot
May 1999
Hudson County, New Jersey
EPA 500-F-99-074
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