Brownfields 2011 Assessment Grant Fact Sheet
               Wabash, IN
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 Wabash was selected to receive a brownfields
assessment coalition grant. The city's coalition partners
are the Town of North Manchester and Wabash County.
Located in north-central Indiana, the coalition's
geographic region encompasses the Wabash County area
(population 32,558). The region once had a strong
industrial base. Over the past decade, economic
downturns have caused manufacturers to relocate or close
facilities, leading to significant job losses and the creation
of large brownfields in and around the region's residential
neighborhoods. The City of Wabash has lost 11.2 percent
of its population over the past decade, largely as a result
of the decline of the industrial base. The region's
unemployment rate  is  above national and state averages,
and the county's median household income is 11 percent
less than the national average. There are 290 sites with
known environmental contamination in the region,
consisting mostly of active and abandoned  gas stations,
dry cleaners, foundries, and manufacturing plants.
Brownfield  assessments will support characterization of
priority sites and are expected to help catalyze cleanup
and redevelopment.
                     Assessment Grant

                     $400,000 for hazardous substances
                     $200,000 for petroleum
                     EPA has selected the City of Wabash for a
                     brownfields assessment coalition grant.
                     Community-wide hazardous substances and
                     petroleum grant funds will be used to conduct
                     about 11 Phase I and 11 Phase II environmental
                     site assessments and develop cleanup plans.
                     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: City of Wabash,IN
                     260-563-4171

                     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-128-073
       May 2011

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