Brownfields 2009 Assessment Grant
Fact Sheet
Columbia, SC
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 City of Columbia was selected to receive a
brownfields assessment coalition grant. Columbia's
coalition partners are the City of West Columbia, and
four community development corporations. Located in
the heart of South Carolina, Columbia (population
124,818) first experienced industrial growth along the
Congaree, Saluda, and Broad Rivers. Plantations, cotton
mills, trains, and other industries lined the riverbanks.
Today, there are numerous vacant, dilapidated
structures in the neighborhoods of the Congaree region.
They include industrial, railroad, and petroleum
properties. Portions of the coalition area are within the
Sumter-Columbia Empowerment Zone, where 39.1
percent of residents live below the poverty level. Nearly
77 percent of residents are African-American.
Uncertainties related to contamination have inhibited
redevelopment efforts in the region. Brownfield
assessments will help the city resolve these
uncertainties, and are expected to increase the
marketability of sites to prospective purchasers and
developers.
Assessment Grant
$750,000 for hazardous substances
(Recovery Act Funding)
$250,000 for petroleum (Recovery Act
Funding)
EPA has selected the City of Columbia for a
brownfields assessment coalition grant.
Community-wide hazardous substances and
petroleum grant funds will be used to inventory
potential brownfield sites, and conduct from 20 to 25
Phase I and from 15 to 18 Phase II environmental
site assessments throughout the Cities of Columbia
and West Columbia. The city anticipates developing
8 to 10 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 4 Brownfields Team
(404) 562-8792
EPA Region 4 Brownfields Web site
(http: //www. epa.gov/region4/waste/bf)
Grant Recipient: City of Columbia,SC
(803) 998-8040
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-09-121
May 09
------- |