State and Tribal Response
Program Highlights
SEPA
United States
Environmental Protec
Agency
EPA Funding Provided to States and Tribes to Address Contaminated Land in their Communities
REGION I
PENOBSCOT INDIAN NATION -The Penobscot Indian Nation (PIN)
Department of Natural Resources is using Section 128(a) Tribal
Response Program funding to continue developing an inventory of
potential Brownfields properties and strengthen the PIN's capacity to
respond to contaminated properties within tribal lands. Most recently,
the tribe is working to prepare a remediation plan to revitalize a
riverfront property that was historically used as a metal foundry and
machine shop. The tribe would like to develop this property into open
greenspace with water access for fishing and small boats on the
Penobscot River. Additionally, the tribe has completed two additional
Phase I environmental assessments on properties with the intention
of using the properties for agriculture including organic vegetable
production. The properties are primarily undeveloped but have
historically received significant urban fill. Phase II environmental
assessments are currently being prepared to investigate if the
urban fill has the potential to negatively impact human health, the
environment, and crops grown on the properties.
Former metal foundry and machine shop property.
REGION 2
ST. REGIS MOHAWK TRIBE - Like the Mohawks of Akwesasne,
the Ramapough Indian Nation are a strong people in the face
of adversity. In the fall of 2007, the Ramapough Nation made its
initial visit to the St. Regis Mohawk reservation to meet with the St.
Regis Mohawk Tribe's (SRMT) Environment Division Brownfields
Program. The Ramapough Nation land, located on the New Jersey
and New York border, was contaminated by toxic paint sludge from
the neighboring industrial facility. The Ramapough Nation gathered
information from the SRMT's Environment Division regarding
how to address contamination, health effects, cultural losses, and
the struggle to overcome these obstacles. During this initial visit,
the Environment Division shared information and visited with the
community to talk about their experiences living next to an industrial
landfill. In April 2014, the Ramapough Nation returned to the SRMT
reservation to share their success story and how they fought for their
land and health by working with the industrial facility to clean up the
contamination. In June 2104, members of the SRMT used Section
128(a) Response Program funding to visited the Ramapough Nation
to tour the successful redevelopment of the property into a large
community medicine garden and to attend their "Healing of the Earth
Ceremony." The collaboration between SRMT and the Ramapough
Nation is a wonderful example of how tribes can stand strong against
environment contamination while staying true and protecting their
culture for future generations. The SRMT Brownfields Program hopes
to continue its relationship with the Ramapough Nation and apply
what they learned to their own brownfields properties in Akwesasne.
Ramapough Nation "Healing of the Earth Ceremony."
CERCLA Section 128(a) State and Tribal Response Program Fundin
July/August 2014
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REGION 3
VIRGINIA- The South Jefferson Redevelopment Area of Roanoke—
the location of six Voluntary Response Program (VRP) cleanup sites
located in a former industrial area—continues its transformation as
construction continues at The Bridges. The Virginia Department
of Environmental Quality used Section 128(a) Response Program
funding to provide oversight of the cleanup activities. This 22-acre
project is a mixed-use development that includes new apartments,
restaurants, offices, and retail space on the site of a former mill and
scrap yard. The project will complement the Virginia Tech-Carilion
School of Medicine & Research Institute, Riverside office complex,
the Cambria Suites hotel, as well as a site adjacent to the Walnut
Street Bridge. Plans are for the project to grow to 1 million square
feet of residential, retail, and office space that will connect downtown
with the Roanoke River to create a destination that will include a
public river walk, kayak launch, and riverfront dining. The Bridges is
being developed by WVS Companies, which specializes in reusing
existing buildings and amenities to create new communities.
REGION 4
FLORIDA- Located approximately one mile northeast of downtown
Orlando, the Mills Park development is taking shape on a 12-acre
former lumber yard. A railroad spur that ran down the middle of
the property was the source of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon
and arsenic contaminated soils. Site cleanup began in the spring
of 2012 and resulted in the removal of more than 11,000 tons of
contaminated soil. While cleanup was underway, a Brownfield Site
Rehabilitation Agreement (BSRA) was negotiated and signed. The
Florida Department of Environmental Protection used Section 128(a)
Response Program funding to provide oversight to the cleanup
activities and issued an unconditional Site Rehabilitation Completion
Order (SRCO) in December 2012. When complete, the mixed use
redevelopment will include more than 348,000 square feet of retail,
restaurant, medical, general office, and residential space including a
Fresh Market store that is scheduled to open by the end of 2014.
REGION 5
ILLINOIS - In 2004, the City of Lanark purchased a former gas
station and automotive service building with the intent of renovating
it and relocating the City Hall administrative offices and the Public
Library. The building is located in the heart of the downtown district
and was once a thriving service automotive center. The building had
been sitting vacant for many years, and deterioration of the building
and property, along with environmental issues, were becoming a
concern. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (ILEPA) used
Section 128(a) Response Program funding to provide technical
assistance and oversight of the environmental assessments and
removal of an underground storage tank and contaminated soil at the
property. The assessment and cleanup process took over two years,
with all environmental work being completed. The Lanark Municipal
Building Complex project was officially completed in January 2013,
ahead of schedule. The city moved its administrative offices to the
new facility in the end of January 2013, and the Library moved to the
new facility the first week of April 2013. The City of Lanark is hoping
the economic investment made into one of its vacant downtown
buildings will encourage additional redevelopment in the downtown
area. Lanark's Municipal Building Renovation project is one that was
made possible due to the involvement, support, and assistance from
many entities at the private, local, state and federal level.
Completed Lanark Municipal Building Complex.
Artist rendering of the Mills Park Development.
CERCLA Section 128(a) State and Tribal Response Program Funding
July/August 2014
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REGION 6
INTER-TRIBAL ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL (ITEC) - Cherokee
Nation used Section 128(a) Response Program funding to host the
19th Annual ITEC Conference on July 29 and 30, 2014 at the Hard
Rock Hotel in Catoosa, Oklahoma. Approximately 190 participants
from various Tribes in Oklahoma, New Mexico, Louisiana, Arizona,
and Montana attended the conference. There were also 25 vendor
booths that were available to display information resources and
equipment. An agenda was developed for a plenary session
and 15 concurrent sessions. Each session included three to four
presentations. Topics included the following:
• Tribal Recycling Projects; Pest Management Components of
Integrated Solid Waste Management
• Agriculture and Conservation, including partnerships of Oklahoma
with Oklahoma Tribes
• Green Initiatives and Technologies
• Climate Change
• Tribal Profiles of the Osage Nation Environmental and Natural
Resources Program, Muscogee Creek Nation Environmental
Services, and Tao Pueblo Division of Natural Resources
• Endangered and Threatened Species
• Food Sovereignty and Cultural Preservation
• Brownfields of Understanding Liability of all Appropriate Inquiry
• Underground Storage Tanks and the Advances in Technology and
Advantages in Compliance
• Restoration of Wetlands
REGION 7
NEBRASKA- Near Gibbon, the Nebraska Department of
Environmental Quality (DEQ) used Section 128(a) Response
Program funding to conduct assessment activities at a farm site
adjacent to the Lillian Annette Rowe Bird Sanctuary. Established in
1974, the Rowe Sanctuary protects habitat for waterfowl, migrating
cranes, and birds, including the endangered Interior Least Tern and
threatened piping plover. The Phase I assessment provided all-
appropriate inquiry for the Sanctuary, the prospective purchasers of
the farm site. The newly acquired 590-acre farm site, located along
the Platte River in central Nebraska, will be redeveloped into ideal
roosting habitat for over 600,000 sandhill cranes that migrate through
the area each spring. The restoration will include wetland restoration,
prescribed burning and grazing, and the removal of invasive species.
The property will be open to the public, and the farmhouse will be
retained to house sanctuary volunteers. The acquisition accompanies
the 40th anniversary of the sanctuary, and brings the total area
protected by the sanctuary to over 2,800 acres. The Rowe Sanctuary
is also home to the lain Nicholson Audubon Center, which hosts
approximately 17,000 visitors each year to learn about local wildlife
and conservation, as well as view the sandhill crane migration.
Sandhill cranes roosting at sunset near the Platte River. Photo courtesy of Frank Gardler.
REGION 8
STANDING ROCK SIOUX TRIBE (SRST) - SRST recently used
Section 128(a) Response Program funding to provide cleanup activity
oversight and complete redevelopment on two former brownfields
in Fort Yates, North Dakota, known as the Old Teachers' Quarters
and the Old Planning Building. The Old Teachers' Quarters was
abandoned in the 1990s and was later set on fire, leaving behind
a debris pile and foundation contaminated with lead, arsenic, and
asbestos. The EPA Region 8 Brownfields Program conducted a
Targeted Brownfields Assessment (TBA) on the property and then
SRST was awarded a Brownfields Cleanup Grant, which SRST
used to complete cleanup activities in 2012. With the environmental
hurdles cleared, the Tribal Environmental Health Department
constructed its new office building on the property, successfully
returning the property to productive use. Similarly, the Old Planning
Building had been abandoned and was set on fire in 2011. EPA
Region 8 conducted a TBA and determined extensive asbestos and
CERCLA Section 128(a) State and Tribal Response Program Fundin
July/August 2014
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lead contamination. Due to the proximity of the debris pile to a nearby
school, EPA's Emergency Response Program completed cleanup.
The Tribe recently completed construction of new housing for law
enforcement officers on the property.
REGION 10
New law enforcement officer housing building.
REGION 9
HAWAII - Using Section 128(a) Response Program funding, the
Hawaii Department of Health, in collaboration with U.S. EPA Region
9 and the Center for Creative Land Recycling (CCLR), held its 6th
Brownfields Redevelopment Forum, entitled "Supporting Growth,
Development and a Sustainable Hawaii," on October 17, 2013. The
Hawaii Brownfields Forum was created to encourage developers,
landowners, and investors to redevelop brownfields properties by:
• Facilitating interaction and partnerships among diverse stakeholders
• Promoting greater use of programs designed to facilitate
redevelopment
• Explaining regulatory requirements and the use of site assessment/
cleanup tools
• Informing stakeholders of grants and other financial incentives
• Identifying obstacles and incentives to help further facilitate
redevelopment
The Brownfields Forum was well attended by a broad spectrum of
Hawaii stakeholders including: owners of brownfields properties,
public development agencies, private developers, public interest
groups, bankers, environmental consultants, and more. The agenda
included a wide range of accomplished speakers and a great deal
of time was devoted to facilitating informative discussions among
speakers and attendees. Feedback was very positive and the
Brownfields Forum was judged to be a great success.
YAKUTAT TLINGIT TRIBE (YTT) - YTT had been concerned about
potential dioxin contamination in the soil, water, and subsistence
resources at the Ankau Saltchucks that are located near the Alaska
Native Village of Yakutat. The YTT value this historic area for its
subsistence resources and because the site hosts a yearly youth
camp. The dioxin concern was due to the installation of military
facilities surrounding Yakutat and the Phipps Peninsula that began
in 1929. In response, the U.S. Department of Defense organized
military sites into concern groups to address health and safety
issues from polychlorinated biphenyls, diesel, gasoline, oil, metals,
asbestos, debris dumps, barrel dumps, fuel storage areas, firing
ranges, septic systems, culverts, and roads. The YTT used Section
128(a) Response Program funding to investigate and sample
the former military sites. In 2010, the YTT's Brownfields program
petitioned the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
(ATSDR) and Alaska Department of Health and Social Services
(DHSS) for assistance in evaluating the sampling findings and
determining the outcome in terms of public health and the impact on
the community. The YTT Brownfields program invited ATSDR and the
Alaska DHSS, Environmental Health Program to Yakutat to present
the study's findings. The study found that the military activities do
not have a connection to the high cancer rates in Yakutat. It did
show that these high cancer rates are all over rural Alaska. It also
found that the dioxin level in the sampled shellfish—one of YTT's
subsistence resources—has a lower level than shellfish that was
sampled at grocery stores in urban areas. The community members
now feel it is safe to enjoy the subsistence resources from the Ankau
Saltchucks - their garden.
United States
Environmental Protection
CERCLA Section 128(a) State and Tribal Response Program Funding
July/August 2014
EPA-560-F-I4-2IO
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