Brownfields 2010 Assessment Grant Fact Sheet ™ Marinette County, Wl 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 Marinette County was selected to receive a brownfields assessment grant. Located in northeastern Wisconsin on the shores of Lake Michigan, Marinette County (population 43,418) contains forests, farms, and small cities. Many communities date back to the 1800s, when forestry and mining first came to the area, and were developed from logging camps that supported the forestry industry. That industry used the area"s abundant lakes and rivers to transport logs. Many of the county"s brownfields are in areas subject to flooding, increasing the potential for contaminants to impact surface water and groundwater. The state has identified more than 257 contaminated properties in the county, which has experienced a 7.4 percent population decline since 2000. The county has lost nearly 67 percent of its paper mill jobs since 1990, and has an unemployment rate of 12.5 percent. Assessment of brownfields will clarify environmental concerns and remove some of the stigma associated with sites. It also is expected to facilitate redevelopment and leverage private investment. Assessment Grant $200,000 for petroleum EPA has selected Marinette County for a brownfields assessment grant. Community-wide petroleum grant funds will be used to conduct a brownfields inventory and perform up to 10 Phase I and up to five Phase II environmental site assessments. Grant funds also will be used to develop two cleanup plans and conduct 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/R5Brownfiel ds) Grant Recipient: Marinette County,WI 715-732-7536 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-10-129 April 2010 ------- |