w5 Brownfields 2003 Job Training Grant Fact Sheet Oklahoma City, OK 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 Oklahoma City Office of Workforce Development was selected to receive a job training grant. Oklahoma City (population 506,132) contains a federally designated EZ (population 47,823), from which students will be recruited. Most of the residents of the EZ are minorities and more than 44% of EZ households have an income below $15,000. The two major brownfields challenges facing this community are the presence of clandestine methamphetamine labs and a variety of petroleum-contaminated sites. Environmental companies are expanding their operations in the city, and this grant will be used to train local residents for living wage jobs in this growing business. Job Training Grant $200,000 EPA has selected the Oklahoma City Office of Workforce Development for a brownfields job training grant. The Office of Workforce Development anticipates training 110 participants, achieving a 70% placement rate, and tracking students for one year. The training program will consist of seven 80-hour training cycles covering hazardous materials handling and methamphetamine lab remediation. Classes will be held at the city's police and fire department training campus. Candidates will be recruited from residents of the city's Empowerment Zone (EZ). Many of the priority brownfields identified when the city initiated an EPA-funded Brownfields Pilot are in or near the EZ. The Office of Workforce Development has years of experience in placing graduates in appropriate jobs. 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 6 Brownfields Team (214) 665-6780 EPA Region 6 Brownfields Web site (http://www.epa.gov/region6/bro wnfields ) Grant Recipient: City of Oklahoma City (405) 297-3826 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 500-F-03-028 Protection Agency Response (5105T) May 2003 Washington, DC 20450 Kesponse (si us ) ------- |