Brownfields 2011 Job Training Grant Fact Sheet
* OAI, Inc., Chicago, IL
EPA Brownfields Program
In 2010, the Office of Brownfields and Land
Revitalization (OBLR) led an effort to more closely
collaborate on workforce development and job training
with other programs within EPA's Office of Solid Waste
and Emergency Response (OSWER), including the Office
of Resource Conservation and Recovery (ORCR), Office
of Superfund Remediation and Technology Innovation
(OSRTI), Office of Underground Storage Tanks (OUST),
Federal Facilities Restoration and Reuse Office (FFRRO),
Center for Program Analysis (CPA), Innovation,
Partnerships, and Communication Office (IPCO), and the
Office of Emergency Management (OEM) to develop a
job training cooperative agreement opportunity that
includes expanded training in other environmental media
outside the traditional scope of just brownfields. As a
result of these discussions, the "Environmental Workforce
Development and Job Training Grants Program,"
formerly known as the "Brownfields Job Training Grants
Program," was formed and now provides grantees the
ability to deliver additional hazardous and solid waste
training. By expanding the program, communities are
provided the flexibility to deliver new types of
environmental training based on local labor market
demands.
Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training
grant funds are provided to nonprofit organizations and
other eligible entities to recruit, train, and place
predominantly low-income and minority, unemployed and
under-employed residents from solid and hazardous
waste-impacted communities. Residents learn the skills
needed to secure full-time, sustainable employment in the
environmental field, including a focus on assessment and
cleanup activities. These grants help to create green jobs
that reduce environmental contamination and promote
sustainability in communities throughout the nation. EPA
awarded its first Brownfields Job Training Grants in 1998.
To date, more than 5,000 people have obtained
environmental employment in the environmental field
with an average starting hourly wage of $14.65.
Community Description
OAI, Inc., will target its job training activities in the South
and West Sides of Chicago (total population 2.8 million).
Job Training Grant
$300,000
EPA has selected OAI, Inc., for an environmental
workforce development and job training grant.
OAI, Inc., plans to train 45 students, place 40
graduates in environmental jobs, and track
graduates for one year. The training program will
consist of two 11-month training cycles, with five
training components: Environmental Health and
Safety Training (120 hours),
Horticulture/Alternative Treatment Technologies
(660 hours), Household Chemical and Computer
Recycling (60 hours), Home Energy Efficiency
Training (270 hours), and Professional
Development and Career Advancement (210
hours). Courses will include 40-hour
HAZWOPER, 10-hour OSHA construction safety,
integrated pest management, and lead, asbestos,
and mold abatement. Primary trainers will be OAI,
Inc., Chicago Department of Environment, and
other professional consultants. Students will be
recruited from among underrepresented,
unemployed, and underemployed residents of the
South and West Sides of Chicago. OAI, Inc., will
work with local environmental employers, the
city's Urban Management and Brownfield
Redevelopment Division, and labor unions to
place graduates in environmental jobs. WRD
Environmental, which is the managing partner of
the city's Greencorps Program, has committed to
hiring program graduates.
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
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, DC 20450
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105T)
EPA 560-F-11-051
July 2011
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The target areas include Empowerment Zones and
Renewal Communities. For more than 100 years, the
South Side of Chicago was a major industrial center.
Today, residents face the residual effects of industrial
pollution and recent dumping. Residents of the South Side
and South Cook County had the highest foreclosure rates
in Illinois in 2008 and 2010. On the South Side, 95 to 98
percent of residents are African-American, and
unemployment rates range from 12 to 27 percent. In some
West Side communities, 51 to 80 percent of residents are
Hispanic, and 73 to 89 percent of some communities are
African-American. The unemployment rates range from
14 to 22 percent. There are at least 1,000 acres of
brownfields and numerous Superfund sites in Chicago.
OAI's surveys with nine employers who have hired
previous graduates project hiring at least 1,000
environmental technicians during the coming year,
indicating demand for workers with the skills of program
graduates. Key employer needs include training in lead
and mold remediation, weatherization, and OSHA
construction. Eight employers have expressed an interest
in developing the job training program curriculum,
serving as mentors, and ultimately hiring graduates.
(nttpY/www.epa.gov/lOhJrownliel as)
Grant Recipient: OAI, Inc., Chicago
3125283512
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-11-051
July 2011
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