State and Tribal Response
Program Highlights
EPA Funding Provided to States and Tribes to Address Contaminated Land in their Communities
REGION I
NEW HAMPSHIRE - The New Hampshire Department of
Environmental Services (NHDES) used Section 128(a) Response
Program funding to complete Phase I and Phase II environmental
assessments at the Richelson Building in Plymouth. Constructed
between 1930 and 1937 and originally occupied by a clothing store
and ski outfitting shop, the building was renovated in 1992 to include
a furniture store, tanning salon, photocopy shop, bagel shop, art
studio, and office for Plymouth State University (PSU). Vacant
since 2009, however, the assessments resolved concerns about
potential petroleum contamination associated with an underground
storage tank. The assessments revealed that no cleanup was
required and allowed the Grafton County Economic Development
Council (GCEDC) to receive U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development funding to purchase the property. In addition,
the assessments allowed GCEDC to leverage $500,000 in New
Hampshire Tax Credits and successfully apply for a loan from the
Northern Border Regional Commission, a new regional coordination
mechanism for economic and community development. As a result,
the Plymouth Enterprise Center, a business development incubator
associated with GCEDC and PSU, now operates out of a new
three-story building at the property. PSU provides staff and programs
to assist startup companies to the point where they are successful
enough to leave the incubator space and be replaced with new
startup companies.
REGION 2
NEW YORK - Located in the City of Highland, Ulster County, a now-
redeveloped brownfield site began as an apple processing facility
that discharged process wastewater (apple wash water) through floor
drains into two underground storage tanks. From 1987 to 1996, a
different company leased the property, manufacturing monochrome
plasma displays and developing color plasma display technology
before abandoning the property in 1996. In 2009, the New York
Department of Environmental Control used Section 128(a) Response
Program funding to oversee the environmental assessments and
cleanup of the property. The assessments found limited impact to
soil due to the former use as an apple processing plant and residual
impact to groundwater resulting from an old fuel spill. Soil vapor
samples detected the volatile organic compounds perchloroethylene
(PCE) and trichloroethane (TCA) beneath the onsite building, and
two sub-slab depressurization systems were installed to prevent the
contamination from affecting indoor air quality. After cleanup activities
were completed, Prism Solar Technologies purchased the property
for the production of solar panels. The company now uses the
building for solar manufacturing, offices, and storage space.
Aerial view of Prism Solar Technobgies building.
REGION 3
DELAWARE -Aformer brownfield on the east side of Wilmington
has been transformed into a nonprofit community assistance center.
The property consisted of a vacant three-story building historically
used for residential, retail and office space until the Delaware
Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control used
Section 128(a) Response Program funding to assess and cleanup
hazardous substances at the site. The contamination resulted
from the fill materials in the site subsurface and in the building
components themselves. Cleanup activities required the excavation
and disposal of contaminated soil adjacent to the building, to a
depth of approximately eight feet. The nonprofit St. Patrick's Center
now uses the renovated building for administrative offices. The St.
Patrick's Center provides emergency food, meals, respite for the
homeless, clothing, transportation, and recreational activities for
people in need on Wilmington's east side.
GEORGIA- Located two miles east of downtown Atlanta, the new
4.8-acre ENSO Apartments property occupies a prime location
along the Atlanta Beltline. Walkable and with easy access to
public transportation, the ENSO Apartments are the first multi-unit
residential development in both Atlanta and the Southeast to earn the
designation of Gold Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
(LEED) certification. Historically, heavy industrial activities occurred
on the property dating back to 1932. The Georgia Environmental
Protection Division (EPD) used Section 128(a) Response
Program funding to oversee assessment and cleanup activities.
An environmental assessment indicated high lead concentrations
localized near an existing sewer line. To meet state risk reduction
standards, 13,882 tons of soil were excavated and a small area
already designed for use as a road was rezoned as non-residential.
CERCLA Section 128(a) State and Tribal Response Program Fundin
May/June 2013
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As a result of this redevelopment, the total assessed property value
of land and buildings increased by nearly 7.5 percent, and the project
has served as a catalyst for further redevelopment in the area.
Development plans have recently been filed to transform an adjacent
former concrete plant into a 170,000-square foot retail development.
Gold LEED certified ENSO Apartments boated along the Atlanta Beltline.
REGION 5
KEWEENAW BAY INDIAN COMMUNITY (KBIC) - KBIC is using
Section 128(a) Response Program funding to actively locate and
identify brownfields, building its inventory of potential brownfield
sites within L'Anse Reservation boundaries by using historical
society resources and talking with tribal members about former
uses of abandoned or under-utilized properties on the reservation.
KBIC's Natural Resources Department is developing protocols
and cleanup standards that will establish a process for moving
properties through the assessment and cleanup phases and result
in the beneficial reuse of these properties. Recently, KBIC also
completed the assessment and cleanup of the Sand Point property
using a combination of Section 128(a) Response Program funding,
EPA Brownfields Cleanup grant funding, tribal general funds, and
Great Lakes Basin program funds. The Sand Point property consists
of shoreline property impacted by copper ore processing wastes,
known as stamp sands, which contain low-level concentrations of
heavy metals. As part of the cleanup, a soil and vegetation cap was
constructed over more than 33 acres of the affected area. Through
this effort, KBIC transformed the property into a recreational area for
use by tribal members and the general public. KBIC's long-term plan
for the site is to incorporate greenspace and landscape architectural
designs, as well as provide hiking trails, wildlife viewing, and areas
for personal reflection.
EIGHT NORTHERN INDIAN PUEBLOS COUNCIL (ENIPC) -
ENIPC's Office of Environmental Technical Assistance (OETA) is
using Section 128(a) Response Program funding to work with the
22 pueblos and tribes in New Mexico and West Texas to promote
the enhancement of environmental resources and environmental
health while protecting tribal lands from environmental hazards. In
support of these goals, ENIPC-OETA is working with the Santa Fe
Community College (SFCC) and the Job New Mexico (NM) EPA
Environmental Training Program for unemployed and underemployed
workers. In the fall of 2012, the first graduating class consisting of
18 graduates—10 of which were pueblo members—received their
certifications in OSHA Hazardous Waste Site Worker (HAZWOPER)
40 hour, CPR and First Aid and Incident Command Basic trainings. In
the spring of 2013, courses offered Forestry Technician and Biofuels
Training that teaches forestry, conservation, timber marking, and
ecological restoration monitoring skills to prepare participants to be
U.S. Forest Service Certified timber cruisers. The Section 128(a)
Response Program funding, in conjunction with the SFCC Job NM
EPA Environmental training program, will continue to create and
enhance job training opportunities for these tribes and their people.
REGION 7
NEBRASKA- The volunteer fire department in Ord needed a new
fire hall, and the location being looked at was a 1/2-acre of vacant,
grass-covered land in the middle of this rural community. A post
rail fence, concrete slabs indicative of former buildings, and a
concrete paved alley were the only features on the property prior
to its redevelopment. The Nebraska Department of Environmental
Quality used Section 128(a) Response Program funding to perform
an environmental assessment, which identified that the property used
to support various commercial businesses, including a gas station
and a retail store. While elevated petroleum hydrocarbons in the soil
and groundwater were found onsite, they were below the regulatory
action levels. Elevated lead concentrations detected in soil at two
locations factored into the design phase of the redevelopment. The
new fire department facility includes paved surfaces covering the
elevated lead areas to serve as a physical barrier between people
and lead in the soil. The completed assessment facilitated the town's
obtaining $1.3 million in redevelopment funding from private donors
to complete the project. The former brownfield is now the home to the
Ord Volunteer Fire Deparment Hall for the 17 volunteer Emergency
Medical Technicians of the Ord Rescue Squad.
CERCLA Section 128(a) State and Tribal Response Program Fundin
May/June 2013
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REGION 8
CHEYENNE RIVER SIOUX TRIBE - The Cheyenne River Sioux
Tribe has used Section 128(a) Response Program funding to
establish a Tribal Response Program (TRP) capable of assessing
and cleaning up properties on its tribal lands, as evidenced by its
successful administration of an EPA Brownfields Cleanup grant for
the former White Horse Day School project. The experience gained
with this project allowed the TRP to identify best cleanup practices
that will be directly transferable to the Tribe's Swift Bird Community.
The Swift Bird Day School has the same footprint as the White
Horse Day School, and a 2012 assessment confirmed comparable
contamination. Lessons learned, as well as the waste volumes
known from the previous cleanup, will help facilitate the Swift Bird
Day School cleanup. The TRP also used Section 128(a) Response
Program funding in 2012 to assess 17 abandoned structures in the
Eagle Butte Community. The assessments revealed high levels of
asbestos and lead-based paint at these structures, and the TRP
is coordinating with EPA Region 8 on potential removal actions for
a number of these abandoned structures during summer 2013.
Finally, the TRP continues to build relationships with other tribal
offices, including the housing authority and land management office,
to facilitate beneficial and appropriate reuse and redevelopment of
these properties.
REGION 9
JIANA ISLANDS
COMMONWEALTH OF THE NORTHERN MARIANA I
(CNMI) - Under the Section 128(a) Response Program, the CNMI
Division of Environmental Quality (DEO), with technical assistance
from EPA Region 9, conducted assessment activities at the 7.6-acres
KV-1 site located in Koblerville, Saipan. Surrounded by vacant private
land, contamination at KV-1 site has thus far hindered potential
redevelopment in the area. Goals for the site are to characterize the
fuel product, delineate the contamination plume, and determine the
cleanup method needed to eventually clean up the property—Section
128(a) Response Program funding has been instrumental in setting
the stage for the site-specific investigation to collect this information.
The assessment included installation and sampling of 13 monitoring
wells for contaminant and plume characterization, producing
valuable property information that will lead to a cleanup decision.
This will eventually allow the property and adjacent properties to
regain their market value. CNMI depends on tourism and available
lands for economic revitalization, and over the past few years, the
CNMI economy has been impacted adversely by the recent global
economic recession. This has triggered a decline in both the number
of tourists coming to the CNMI and the interest of investors in
acquiring available land for development. Efforts such as the KV-1
site assessment will help reverse this trend.
Assessment activities at the KV-1 site boated in Koblerville, Saipan.
ORGANIZED VILLAGE OF KASAAN - The Prince of Wales I
Symposium, held in May every year, is an annual workshop for state,
local and tribal stakeholders to convene and discuss strategies
for addressing the many abandoned mine sites contaminating the
Prince of Wales Island, Alaska. Facilitated through the Organized
Village of Kasaan's Brownfields Tribal Response Program, this year
expanded on the successes of the previous two years by adding an
extra day solely dedicated to Section 128(a) Response Programs.
The Organized Village of Kasaan partnered with the Central Council
of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska and the Alaska
Department of Environmental Conservation to present on recent
brownfields progress and work through a mapping exercise aimed
at identifying brownfields in Southeast Alaska. Three additional
Tribal Response Programs were represented, including Craig Tribal
Association, Hydaburg Cooperative Association, and Klawock
Cooperative Association. The symposium provided an excellent
avenue for networking and cooperation between programs. At the
conclusion of the meeting, all five of the represented tribes agreed
to expand upon this cross-program collaboration by holding monthly
brownfields conference calls.
CERCLA Section 128(a) State and Tribal Response Program Funding
May/June 2013 EPA-560-F-13-206
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