\ 2012 Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grant Fact Sheet Milwaukee, Wl EPA Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grant Program In 2010, the Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (OBLR) led an effort to more closely collaborate with other programs within EPA on workforce development and job training. Program offices now participating in the expanded initiative include 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), Office of Wastewater Management (OWM), Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP), and the Office of Emergency Management (OEM). This initiative was created to develop a job training cooperative agreement opportunity that includes expanded training in other environmental media outside the traditional scope of just brownfields cleanup. As a result of this effort, the Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grants Program, formerly known as the "Brownfields Job Training Grants Program," now allows applicants to deliver other training in the environmental field, in addition to the core traditional brownfields hazardous waste and petroleum training historically provided. 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. To date, EPA has funded 191 job training grants totaling over $42 million through the former Brownfields Job Training Program and newly expanded Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Program. As of January 2012, approximately 10,275 individuals had completed training and approximately 7,155 obtained employment in the environmental field, with an average starting hourly wage of $14.12. This equates to a cumulative placement rate of Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grant $200,000 EPA has selected the City of Milwaukee for an environmental workforce development and job training grant. The City of Milwaukee plans to train a minimum of 80 students, place at least 64 graduates in environmental jobs, and track graduates for one year. The core training program includes 105 hours of classroom instruction in 40-hour HAZWOPER, UST leak prevention, solid waste management and recycling, beginning wastewater operator, phytoremediation, and chemical awareness. An additional 375 hours of supplemental training will be offered, including coursework in solar heating, confined space entry, lead and asbestos abatement, and emergency response. Participants can earn up to ten state and federal certifications. The city is targeting unemployed or underemployed residents of neighborhoods most impacted by brownfields, with an emphasis on recruiting residents of neighborhoods with high infant mortality rates. Key partners include the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee, Milwaukee Area Workforce Investment Board, Milwaukee Economic Development Corporation, and Milwaukee Area Technical College. 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 312-886-4747 EPA Region 5 Brownfields Web site (http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfiel ds/) United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington, DC 20450 Solid Waste and Emergency Response (5105T) EPA560-F-12-172 June 2012 ------- approximately 70% for the program, and also includes accomplishments data recorded since the program was created in 1998. Cjrant Recipient: City of Milwaukee, Wl 414-286-3647 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-12-172 June 2012 ------- |