Brownfields 2002 Assessment Pilot Fact Sheet
Land-of-Sky Regional Council, North Carolina
EPA Brownfields Initiative
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
January 11, 2002, President George W. Bush signed into
law the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields
Revitalization Act. Under the Brownfields 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.
Background
EPA has selected the Land-of-Sky Regional Council for
a Brownfields Assessment Pilot. The Land-of-Sky
Regional Council represents Buncombe, Henderson,
Madison, and Transylvania counties (population
344,472) in western North Carolina. Throughout the first
half of the 1900s, road transportation began to eclipse the
railroad and diverted traffic away from river basins,
negatively impacting the timber, textile, tanning, and
paper milling industries. Numerous factories and mills
were forced to close due to poor economic conditions.
Many of these old properties remain neglected or
underused due to real or perceived contamination. New
businesses have looked to rural areas for development
opportunities. The council has targeted three sites,
including a 2.3-acre ice-distribution warehouse and a
1-acre former tannery, both in the French Broad
Riverfront area of Asheville, and a vacant former wood
treating facility in the Town of Fletcher. Additional
target properties may be assessed after a region-wide
inventory of brownfields is completed.
Within the two census tracts in the Asheville target area
(population 6,325), poverty rates range from 23 to 34
percent, compared to 11.5 percent for the region.
Between 7 and 16 percent of target-area residents are
unemployed, compared to 4.3 percent for the region. The
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Pilot Snapshot
Date of Announcement: 05/01/2002
Amount: $200,000
Profile: Land-of-Sky Regional Council, North
Carolina. The Pilot targets brownfields sites in the
Land-of-Sky region for the purpose of stimulating
economic and environmental recovery from the
effects of industrial and residential migration to
former greenfields and rural areas.
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: Land-of-Sky Regional Council,NC
(828)251-6622
Objectives
The objective of the Pilot is to implement a
collaborative, region-wide process for identifying and
prioritizing brownfields for assessment and future
redevelopment. As part of this objective, the Pilot funds
will establish a Land-of-Sky Regional Brownfields
Advisory Group, complete a region-wide inventory of
brownfields, conduct Phase I and Phase II
environmental assessments of properties in the French
Broad Riverfront area of Asheville, conduct a Phase II
environmental assessment of the former wood treating
site, prepare cleanup plans, and reach out to the
community.
Activities
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
• Identifying, characterizing, and prioritizing
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA 500-F-02-061
May 02
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A ,, • A • .c -7r, ^ r-j potential brownfields sites in each county;
African-Americans accounting for 79 percent of the ^ , . _., T , _., TT J -
, .. , , _ . . ., • Conducting Phase 1 and Phase 11 assessments or
population in one census tract and 13 percent in the , . - r.. , , - • • ,
., * + ? H + r +, j • the ice facility and the former tannery site in the
other, compared to 5.7 percent for the surrounding areas. . , .„ J , , ,• • , • • ,
Asheville target area and additional sites in the
region;
• Conducting a Phase II assessment of a former
wood treating property;
• Developing cleanup and redevelopment plans for
the selected brownfields; and
• Conducting public meetings and other
community outreach activities to obtain input
from community residents and other stakeholders
throughout the process.
The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet
been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this
fact sheet are subject to change.
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
and EPA
Protection Agency ResDonse(51oVn May 02
Washington, DC 20450 Kesponse (bl Ob I )
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