A \ Brownfields 2009 Assessment Grant
&Z] Fact Sheet
Johnstown Redevelopment Authority, PA
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 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
The Johnstown Redevelopment Authority was selected
to receive two brownfields assessment grants. Located
in Cambria County, the City of Johnstown (population
23,906) was once a booming steel town. With the
closing of the town's major employer, Bethlehem Steel,
more than 20,000 steel and coal jobs disappeared. A
brownfields inventory has identified 65 sites in the city,
many associated with the former steel industry. These
sites extend the entire 12-mile length of Johnstown.
Other support industries closed along with the steel
industry. Among them are at least 10 facilities likely to
be contaminated by petroleum substances. As a result
of the industrial decline, a large segment of the
population left the Johnstown area to seek employment
elsewhere. Twenty-five percent of city residents are
over the age of 62, and 24 percent live below the
poverty level. Brownfield assessments in the targeted
Bio-Tech Corridor will determine the level of
contamination at sites and are expected to facilitate
cleanup and redevelopment.
Assessment Grants
$200,000 for hazardous substances
(Recovery Act Funding)
$160,000 for petroleum (Recovery Act
Funding)
EPA has selected the Johnstown Redevelopment
Authority for two brownfields assessment grants.
Community-wide hazardous substances grant funds
will be used to conduct five to seven Phase I and two
to four Phase II environmental site assessments in the
Bio-Tech Corridor. Petroleum grant funds will be
used to conduct four to six Phase I and one to three
Phase II environmental site assessments in the same
area. Grant funds also will be used to conduct
cleanup planning and 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 3 Brownfields Team
(215)814-3129
EPA Region 3 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/reg3hwmd/bf-lr)
Grant Recipient: Johnstown Redevelopment
Authority,PA
(814)535-6564
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-09-048
May 09
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