Brownfields 2010 Assessment Grant Fact Sheet
Bennington County Regional Commission, VT
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 Bennington County Regional Commission (BCRC)
was selected to receive two brownfields assessment
grants. The BCRC region (population 35,387) includes 17
municipalities in southwestern Vermont. The Town of
Bennington has long been the principal commercial,
industrial, and cultural center of the county and
surrounding region. Many mills and factories sprang up
along the town"s waterways in support of industries such
as textiles, tanneries, electronics, and petroleum storage
and distribution. A significant decline in manufacturing
employment in Bennington has had an adverse impact on
the town"s economy and area businesses. The town has a
higher unemployment rate and lower median family
income than the county and state averages, and 16.4
percent of individuals live in poverty. The closure of
manufacturing facilities throughout the region has left
behind abandoned buildings and potentially contaminated
land. Brownfield assessments will support the Bennington
County Regional Brownfield Assessment Initiative, which
has planned redevelopment options that can increase
property values, tax revenues, and employment
opportunities.
Assessment Grants
$200,000 for hazardous substances
$156,000 for petroleum
EPA has selected the Bennington County Regional
Commission for two brownfields assessment
grants. Community-wide hazardous substances
grant funds will be used to conduct four Phase I
and four Phase II environmental site assessments.
Petroleum grant funds will be used to conduct
three Phase I and three Phase II environmental site
assessments. Grant funds also will be used to
conduct community outreach and cleanup
planning 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 1 Brownfields Team
(617)918-1424
EPA Region 1 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/regionl/bro wnfields)
Grant Recipient: Bennington County Regional
Commission,VT
802-442-0713 ext 3
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-10-032
April 2010
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