I 4B| Brownfields 2006 Assessment Grant Fact Sheet C/Yy and County of Honolulu, HI 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. On January 11, 2002, President George W. Bush signed into law the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act. Under the Brownfields 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 and County of Honolulu was selected to receive two brownfields assessment grants. Honolulu County (population 876,156) is located in the Hawaiian Islands on the island of Oahu. Oahu has numerous brownfields because of its agricultural, industrial, and military history. Honolulu was dominated by the agricultural industry in the 1880s. By the early 1990s, the pineapple plantations and sugar mills were in decline, and tourism became the city's and county's major industry. The decline in agriculture has left many of the smaller communities on the island with brownfields and pockets of poverty. Some of these communities have unemployment rates as high as 20.5 percent. There is limited land for development in the city, and 9.5 percent of residents live below the poverty level. Brownfields redevelopment will help attract new jobs, provide affordable housing, provide land for business incubators and public facilities, and create greenspace. Assessment Grants $200,000 for hazardous substances $200,000 for petroleum EPA has selected the City and County of Honolulu for two brownfields assessment grants. Hazardous substances and petroleum grant funds will be used to conduct community outreach, inventory and prioritize sites, perform two to three Phase I and Phase II environmental site assessments, and develop cleanup and redevelopment 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 9 Brownfields Team (415) 972-3091 EPA Region 9 Brownfields Web site (http://www.epa.gov/region9/bro wnfields ) Grant Recipient: City and County of Honolulu,HI (808) 527-5860 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 c Environmental anri Fmpflpn™ EPA 560-F-06-191 Protection Agency Response (5105T) May 2006 Washington, DC 20450 Kesponse (si us ) ------- |