Brownfields 2010 Assessment Grant Fact Sheet
               Ashtabula City Port Authority, OH
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 Ashtabula City Port Authority was selected to
receive a brownfields assessment grant. Located along
the shores of Lake Erie, Ashtabula (population 19,689)
was once home to one of the largest ore and coal ports
in the world. With the arrival of the railroad, the city
became  a major shipping and commercial center. In the
1970s, changes in industrial, transportation, and
manufacturing technology exacerbated the growth of
brownfields in the city. Preliminary estimates indicate
that there are more than 80 acres of large underused
land within central Ashtabula. Per capita income in the
city is below the national average, and 20 percent of
residents live below the poverty level. The
unemployment rate is 13.5 percent. The city has
developed the Ashtabula Port Action Plan in an effort to
revitalize the targeted transportation corridor and
historic harbor. Brownfield assessments will help the
city identify and quantify environmental hazards posed
by sites  in order to plan cleanups, remove impediments
to redevelopment, and promote sustainable
revitalization.
                   Assessment Grant

                   $200,000 for hazardous substances

                   EPA has selected the Ashtabula City Port Authority
                   for a brownfields assessment grant.
                   Community-wide hazardous substances grant funds
                   will be used to update an inventory of brownfield
                   sites, conduct six to eight Phase I and two or three
                   Phase II environmental site assessments, and
                   develop one or two cleanup plans. 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 5 Brownfields Team
                   (312)886-7576
                   EPA Region 5 Brownfields Web site
                   (http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields)

                   Grant Recipient: Ashtabula City Port Authority,OH
                   440-992-7154

                   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-10-117
        Apr 10

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