United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington, D.C. 20460 Solid Waste and Emergency Response (5101) EPA 500-F-00-054 April 2000 www.epa.gov/brownfields/ <&EPA Brownfields Supplemental Assistance Tulsa, OK Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5105) 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 up to $200,000 over two 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 brownfields to facilitate cleanup of brownfields sites and prepare trainees for future employment in the environmental 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 EPA awarded the City of Tulsa supplemental assistance for its Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot. Located in the northeastern quadrant of Oklahoma, Tulsa is the 43rd largest city in the country and is continuing to grow. The economic boom of the late 1970s and early 1980s contributed to rapid expansion in outlying greenfields and pulled businesses and residents from the city core, leaving large tracts of land that may be environmentally affected. Numerous redevelopment efforts adjacent to the core area have been delayed due to potential environmental risks. The city faces a shortage of greenfields within the city limits, and future industrial development must focus on brownfields for future economic growth. OBJECTIVES AND PLANNED ACTIVITIES The ultimate goal of Tulsa's Brownfields Redevelopment Program is to restore abandoned, idle, or underused industrial and commercial sites to new productive uses and thereby create jobs and attract capital investments. The Pilot will use the supplemental assistance to add to the established program by furthering its capacity to assess more brownfields sites. Several of the 10 sites to be PILOT SNAPSHOT Tulsa, Oklahoma Date of Announcement: March 2000 Amount: $150,000 Profile: The Pilot targets 10 new brownfields sites, several ofwhichareadjacenttoexisting brownfields sites that are already being redeveloped under the Tulsa Brownfield Redevelopment Program. Contacts: Tulsa Industrial Authority (918)584-7898 Regional Brownfields Team U.S. EPA-Region 6 (214)665-6736 Visit the EPA Region 6 Brownfields web site at: http://www.epa.gov/earth1r6/6sf/bfpages/sfbfhome.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/ ------- targeted are adj acent to existing brownfields properties that are being redeveloped. Four of the 10 new sites are next to Oklahoma Steel Castings; one site is adjacent to Flint Industries; and two sites are by Wheatley/Halliburton. Three other sites are located along Dawson Road, North Utica, and West 21st Street. To accomplish these objectives, the Pilot plans to: •Conduct environmental assessments at 10 redevelopment sites; • Explore methods of financing cleanup costs and create innovative long-term financial incentives, such as preparing for future capitalization of revolving loan funds; • Clarify liability and cleanup issues through the EPA/ Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality Memorandum of Agreement and the Oklahoma Brownfields Voluntary Redevelopment Act; and • Continue to enhance public involvement in determining reuse options at the targeted sites. The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change. Brownfields Supplemental Assistance Tulsa, Oklahoma April 2000 EPA 500-F-00-054 ------- |