Brownfields 2010 Revolving Loan Fund Grant Fact Sheet ***лл* Great Northern Development Corporation, Eastern Montana 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 The Great Northern Development Corporation (GNDC) of eastern Montana was selected to receive a brownfields revolving loan fund grant. The GNDC's coalition partners are the Eastern Plains Economic Development Corporation and the Southeastern Montana Development Corporation. The GNDC serves a 15-county area (combined population 64,120) in northeastern Montana. Historically, the region"s economy has been dominated by farming and ranching, oil and gas development, and the railroad industry. During the past decade, however, this region has seen a loss of employment and a shrinking tax base. The region"s median household income is lower than state and national averages, and a greater percentage of residents live in poverty. There are hundreds of leaking underground storage tank sites and several additional hazardous substances sites in the region, including methamphetamine labs for which there are no cleanup funds. Brownfield cleanups conducted through the RLF grant are expected to remove barriers to redevelopment that can improve the overall economy of the region. Revolving Loan Fund Grant $1,000,000 for hazardous substances $500,000 for petroleum EPA has selected the Great Northern Development Corporation for a brownfields revolving loan fund grant. Grant funds will be used to capitalize a revolving loan fund from which the Great Northern Development Corporation will provide loans and subgrants to support cleanup activities for sites contaminated with hazardous substances and petroleum. Grant funds also will be used to market the fund and promote 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 8 Brownfields Team (303)312-7074 EPA Region 8 Brownfields Web site (http://www.epa.gov/region8/bro wnfields) Grant Recipient: Great Northern Development Corporation,MT (406) 653-2590 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-10-151 April 2010 ------- |