Brownfields  2005 Assessment Grant Fact  Sheet
               Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, Storey County,
EPA Brownfields Program

EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states.
communities, and other stakeholders to work together to
prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse
brownfields. A brownfield 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. Additionally, funding
support is provided to state and tribal response
programs through a separate mechanism.

Community Description

The Nevada Division of Environmental Protection
(NDEP) was selected to receive a brownfields
assessment grant. The site-specific assessment will be
conducted in Storey County (population 3,491), which
was created in 1861 around the Comestock Lode and
the gold and silver mining boom towns of Virginia City
and Gold Hill. Both historic and modern mining
operations have placed a burden on the county's
environment and economy. The county's population is
primarily rural, with only about one-quarter of the
population living in city centers, and the majority of
county residents working outside the county. The
county faces the challenge of providing services to
these residents without employment revenue generated
by their labor force. The target property is the
Gooseberry Mine, a tax-delinquent, medium-sized gold
mining operation that declared bankruptcy. The mine's
redevelopment is part of a larger effort by the county to
diversify its economic base, provide employment
opportunities to its rural residents, and attract a labor
force from surrounding urban populations. That effort
includes a large industrial park being planned in the
vicinity of the  mine.
                   Assessment Grant

                   $350,000 for hazardous substances

                   EPA has selected the Nevada Division of
                   Environmental Protection for a brownfields
                   assessment grant. Grant funds will be used to sample
                   soil and waste, characterize contamination, and
                   develop cleanup plans for the Gooseberry Mine site
                   in Storey County, a former gold and silver mine
                   which includes mine waste materials, a leach pad,
                   and a solid waste landfill. Grant funds also will be
                   used 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
                   (http://www.epa.gov/brownfields).

                   EPA Region 9 Brownfields Team
                   (415) 972-3091
                   EPA Region 9 Brownfields Web  site
                   (http://www.epa.gov/region9/brownfields)

                   Grant Recipient: Nevada Division of Environmental
                   Protection
                   (775) 687-9384

                   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 negotiated.
                   Therefore, activities described in  this fact sheet are
                   subject to change.
  United States
  Environmental
  Protection Agency
  Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA560-F-05-149
        May 05

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