Brownfields 2011 Assessment  Grant Fact Sheet
                          , MS
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 City of Quitman was selected to receive a
brownfields assessment coalition grant. The city's
coalition partners are Clarke County and the Towns of
Enterprise, Stonewall, and  Shubuta. Located in
east-central Mississippi, Quitman is in Clarke County
(population 17,209), a rural area that has an agricultural
base emphasizing cotton cultivation. At the turn of the
21st century, the county's economy also was driven by
electric engine equipment and textile manufacturing.
However, the closure of several plants resulted in job
losses for over 10 percent of county residents and the
creation of blighted, vacant, and underused brownfield
sites. The county's unemployment rate of 14 percent is
substantially higher than the statewide average.
Municipalities in the county have poverty rates as high as
47.7 percent, and median household incomes are
significantly lower that the state average. Brownfield
assessments are expected to facilitate cleanup and
redevelopment projects that will help the county transition
from its industrial base to new, sustainable  job sectors.
                     Assessment Grant

                     $200,000 for hazardous substances
                     $200,000 for petroleum

                     EPA has selected the City of Quitman for a
                     brownfields assessment coalition grant.
                     Community-wide hazardous substances grant
                     funds will be used to inventory sites and conduct
                     15 Phase I and seven Phase II environmental site
                     assessments. Petroleum grant funds will be used to
                     inventory sites and conduct 18 Phase I and 10
                     Phase II environmental site assessments. Grant
                     funds also will be used to support cleanup
                     planning and 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/was te/bf)

                     Grant Recipient: City of Quitman,MS
                     601-776-4002

                     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)
E PA 560-F-128-055
       May 2011

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