Brownfields 2010 Assessment Grant  Fact Sheet
               Wilson, NC
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 Wilson was selected to receive a
brownfields assessment grant. Located along Highway
301 in eastern North  Carolina, Wilson (population
48,433)  is in a geographic area that favors tobacco
farming. By the 1920s, Wilson had become the world"s
largest bright leaf tobacco market, and industry and
commerce flourished along the Highway 301 corridor.
Declines in tobacco and other industries during the
latter half of the 20th century left a legacy of vacant and
contaminated properties. Construction of Interstate 95
and the Highway 264 bypass shifted industry and
commerce away from the 301 corridor. According to an
informal inventory, the city has 72 potential
brownfields, 44 of which are in the 301 corridor area.
Wilson"s poverty rate is more than double the state rate,
and more than 53 percent of Wilson residents are
minorities. Brownfield assessments are expected to help
determine the extent  of suspected contamination and
encourage site cleanup and redevelopment in the city"s
301 corridor and downtown areas.
                   Assessment Grant

                   $200,000 for petroleum

                   EPA has selected the City of Wilson for a
                   brownfields assessment grant. Community-wide
                   petroleum grant funds will be used to inventory and
                   prioritize brownfield sites and conduct at least eight
                   Phase I and five Phase II environmental site
                   assessments. Grant funds also will be used to
                   perform cleanup planning and 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 4 Brownfields Team
                   (404) 562-8792
                   EPA Region 4 Brownfields Web site
                   (http: //www. epa.gov/region4/waste/bf)

                   Grant Recipient: City of Wilson,NC
                   252-296-3398

                   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-10-191
        Apr 10

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