A \ Brownfields 2009 Job Training Grant
tSE./ Fact Sheet
OAI, Inc., Kansas City, MO
RECOUERY.GOV
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
February 17, 2009, President Barack Obama signed
into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
The Recovery Act is an unprecedented effort to
jumpstart our economy, and create or save millions of
jobs. This law provided stimulus funds to the
Brownfields Program to award grants to train
unemployed or underemployed individuals to evaluate
and clean up former industrial and commercial sites.
Under this law, EPA will provide financial assistance to
eligible applicants through four competitive grant
programs: assessment grants, revolving loan fund
grants, cleanup grants, and job training grants.
Community Description
OAI, Inc., was selected to receive a job training grant.
The target areas for this grant will be the urban core
areas of Kansas City (population 475,830) and
Independence. Kansas City has designated one of its
most economically distressed neighborhoods a "Green
Impact Zone." This neighborhood contains over 100
brownfields. The unemployment rate in this area is
more than 58 percent and the per capita income is
$12,239. Independence contains over 180 potential
brownfield sites within a 2.25-square-mile area. The
city has an unemployment rate significantly higher than
the national average, and the median income is 20
percent lower than the national average. A labor market
assessment indicated that over the next three years,
between 7,440 and 9,672 jobs will be generated in the
Kansas City Metropolitan Area due to American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds. A large number
of these jobs are expected to be in the construction and
environmental fields, indicating demand for graduates
of the program.
Job Training Grant
$500,000
EPA has selected OAI, Inc., for a job training grant.
OAI plans to train 80 students, place at least 64
graduates in environmental jobs, and track graduates
for one year. The training program will consist of 98
instructional hours of core training, including
HAZWOPER and OSHA 10-hour construction
health and safety. This training will be followed by
one of two tracks: 168 hours of environmental
remediation training or 96 hours of energy
conservation-weatherization training. Graduates will
receive certifications in OSHA construction and
HAZWOPER. OAI will work with the Cities of
Kansas City and Independence, the Laborers' Local
Union 1290, NorthWest Communities Development
Corporation, and three private contractors to place
graduates in environmental 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
(http://www.epa.gov/brownfields).
EPA Region 7 Brownfields Team
(800) 223-0425
EPA Region 7 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/region7/cleanup/brown fields)
Grant Recipient: OAI, Inc., Kansas City, MO
(312)528-3500
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-09-488
Aug 09
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