Brownfields  2010 Revolving Loan  Fund  Grant
               Fact Sheet
               Rock Island, IL
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 City of Rock Island was selected to receive a
brownfields revolving loan fund grant. Rock Island
(population 34,955) was the site of the first railroad
bridge across the Mississippi River. The Chicago, Rock
Island & Pacific Railroad, later known as the Rock
Island Line, was founded in the city in 1851. By the
late 20th century, Rock Island, like many other Midwest
river towns, had experienced devastating losses in its
industrial base. Today, there are 57 brownfield sites on
the city's inventory. They range from a former gas
station to an 80-acre former tractor manufacturing plant.
Eighteen of the sites are in neighborhoods  that are home
primarily to minority residents and in which there were
a disproportionate number of foreclosures  during the
past two years. Brownfield cleanups conducted through
the RLF grant will reduce the threat to human health
posed by sites, remove blight from the community, and
allow the city to build on its existing brownfields
redevelopment program.
                   Revolving Loan Fund Grant

                   $350,000 for hazardous substances
                   $150,000 for petroleum
                   EPA has selected the City of Rock Island for a
                   brownfields revolving loan fund grant. The grant
                   will be used to capitalize a revolving loan fund from
                   which the City of Rock Island will provide  loans to
                   support cleanup activities for sites contaminated with
                   hazardous substances and petroleum.

                   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 5 Brownfields Team
                   (312)886-7576
                   EPA Region 5 Brownfields Web site
                   (http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields)

                   Grant Recipient: City of Rock Island,IL
                   (309) 732-2920

                   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-10-178
        Apr 10

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