Brownfields  2009 Assessment Grant Fact Sheet
               Middlesex County Improvement Authority, NJ
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. In
2002, the Small Business Liability Relief and
Brownfields Revitalization Act was passed to help
states and communities around the country cleanup and
revitalize brownfields sites. Under this 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 Middlesex County Improvement Authority
(MCIA) was selected to receive a brownfields
assessment coalition grant. The MCIA's coalition
partners are the City of Perth Amboy and the Township
of Woodbridge. Located west of Staten Island,
Middlesex County (population 786,971) has a long
industrial and manufacturing history. Large portions of
Perth Amboy's waterfront, situated along Raritan Bay
and the Arthur Kill, were tied to boat and rail shipping,
heavy manufacturing, and coal and petroleum
distribution. Woodbridge is located just north of Perth
Amboy. From the 1960s through the 1980s, both
municipalities experienced a decline in manufacturing
and related industries. Both have significant numbers of
underused properties and suspected environmental
concerns. At least 47 sites in Perth Amboy and 93
parcels in Woodbridge are on New Jersey's Known
Contaminated Sites  List. In Perth Amboy,  70 percent of
residents are Hispanic, and 14.3 percent of families live
below the poverty level. Brownfield assessments will
identify contaminated areas and help facilitate site
cleanup.
                   Assessment Grant

                   $1,000,000 for hazardous substances

                   EPA has selected the Middlesex County
                   Improvement Authority for a brownfields
                   assessment coalition grant. Community-wide
                   hazardous substances grant funds will be used to
                   inventory brownfields and conduct environmental
                   site assessments at a minimum of five sites in the
                   City of Perth Amboy and the Township of
                   Woodbridge. Grant funds also will be used to
                   support community education and 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 2 Brownfields Team
                   (212) 637-4358
                   EPA Region 2 Brownfields Web site
                   (http://www.epa.gov/region2/brownfields)

                   Grant Recipient: Middlesex County Improvement
                   Authority ,NJ
                   (609) 409-5002

                   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)
EPA 560-F-09-031
        May 09

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