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Brownfields 2008 Job Training Grant Fact Sheet
Tacoma, WA
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 of Tacoma was selected to receive a job training
grant. Located on the southern tip of Puget Sound,
Tacoma is targeting low-income residents of Pierce
County who live near concentrations of former gas station
sites as identified by the Tacoma-Pierce County Health
Department through its 2007 assessment grant. Nearly 28
percent of the 224,484 individuals living in these areas are
minorities, and more than 12 percent live in poverty. The
targeted areas have an average of 28.7 brownfields per
10,000 residents, as compared to only 1.9 brownfields per
10,000 residents in surrounding areas. A recent Pierce
County employment analysis lists hazardous materials
removal workers as an employer need, with one of the
highest average annual growth rates (3.6 percent) of any
field and over 50 new openings each year in the region.
Job Training Grant
$200,000
EPA has selected the City of Tacoma for a job
training grant. Tacoma plans to train 60 students
over a two-year period, place 42 graduates in
environmental jobs, and track them for one year.
The training program will consist of four,
200-hour training cycles comprising coursework in
HAZWOPER; OSHA safety; asbestos, lead, mold,
and heavy metal awareness; confined space
awareness; underground storage tanks; and
environmental chemistry and sampling. Primary
trainers will be certified instructors using facilities
provided, in-kind, by cooperative partner Clover
Park Technical College. Students will be recruited
from among low-income residents of Pierce
County communities that are impacted by
brownfields. Tacoma will work with the
Metropolitan Development Council to recruit and
screen students and ensure their graduation and
placement.
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 10 Brownfields Team
(206)553-7299
EPA Region 10 Brownfields Web site
(http://yosemite.epa.gov/R10/CL
EANUP.NSF/sites/bf)
Grant Recipient: City of Tacoma,WA
(253) 594-7933
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
United States	c
Environmental	anri Fmpflpn™	EPA 560-F-08-236
Protection Agency	Response (5105D	February 2008
Washington, DC 20450	Kesponse (si us )

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fact sheet are subject to change.
United States	c
Environmental	anri Fmpflpn™	EPA 560-F-08-236
Protection Agency	Response (5105T)	February 2008
Washington, DC 20450	Kesponse (si us )

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