I
                           UJ
 Brownfields  2007
 Grant  Fact  Sheet
     Long Beach, CA
EPA Brownfields Program
EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, commu-
nities, and other stakeholders in economic development
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. The
brownfields job training grants provide residents of
communities impacted by brownfields with the skills
and training needed to effectively gain employment in
assessment and cleanup activities associated with
brownfield redevelopment and environmental
remediation. Additionally, funding support is provided to
state and tribal response programs through a separate
mechanism.

Community Description
The City of Long Beach was selected to receive a job
training grant. Long Beach's unemployment rate has
been steadily declining since 2000 due to a changing
economy and an influx of immigrants. Currently, over
  Job Training Grant
  $199,968
  EPA has selected the City of Long Beach for a
  job training grant. The city plans to train 200
  students, place 140 in environmental remediation
  jobs, and track graduates for one year. Trainees
  will receive 180 hours of course work, including
  certification training in HAZWOPER, refinery
  safety overview, asbestos and lead abatement,
  and OSHA standards for the construction indus-
  try. Participants will be recruited from Long
  Beach's most impoverished neighborhoods, which
  are adjacent to targeted brownfields sites. The
  primary trainer will be the Long Beach City
  College. The Miller Children's Hospital, the city's
  Community Development Department, the Long
  Beach Housing Authority, the Long Beach
  Community Action Partnership, and Women in
  Nontraditional Employment Roles will all contrib-
  ute to the placement of graduates in environmen-
  tal jobs.
  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 9 Brownfields Team
  415-972-3270 or 213-244-1821
  http://www.epa.gov/region09/waste/brown/
  index.html
  Grant Recipient: City of Long Beach, CA
  562-570-3701
  The cooperative agreement for this grant has not
  yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described
  in this fact sheet are subject to change.
14,000 people are actively seeking employment. With
an overall poverty rate of 26 percent, Long Beach
                                                  Solid Waste and
                                                  Emergency Response
                                                  (5105T)
                        EPA 560-F-06-261
                        November 2006
                        www.epa.gov/brownfields

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(population 487,100) ranks sixth nationally among cities
with the highest number of residents living in poverty.
and third nationally among cities with the highest
poverty rates for children under the age of 18. Sixty-
seven percent of Long Beach residents are minorities.
and more than 10 percent of the labor force is com-
prised of immigrants. Many low-income Long Beach
residents live in blighted neighborhoods impacted by
brownfields. Despite the economic downturn, local
demand for environmental workers is strong and is
expected to increase approximately 30 percent by
2012, due in large part to brownfields redevelopment.

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