I JBt | Brownfields 2004 Job Training Grant Fact Sheet
\	Merrimack Valley Workforce Investment Board, Lawrence, MA
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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 Merrimack Valley Workforce Investment Board
(MVWIB) was selected to receive a job training grant.
The focus of this grant will be on the City of Lawrence's
federally designated Renewal Community, which is
plagued by poverty, disinvestment, and other problems,
including the presence of a significant number of
brownfields. Renewal Community residents primarily are
Hispanic. The unemployment rates in seven of the nine
census tracts in the community exceeds 25%. The city is
working to clean up several brownfields within the
Renewal Community. Remediation continues on the old
Oxford Paper Mill and is expected to intensify at the
Quadrant component of the Gateway Project, which will
improve transportation in the Gateway area and add
public space along the canal. MVWIB expects demand
for graduates of the training program to be high. A survey
of twelve local environmental firms indicated that nine
planned to hire workers within the next two years.
Job Training Grant
$197,035
EPA has selected the Merrimack Valley
Workforce Investment Board for a job training
grant. The MVWIB plans to train 40 students,
achieve a 75% placement rate, and track students
for one year. The program will consist of 168
hours of training, including courses in hazardous
waste and safety, asbestos and lead abatement,
and confined space entry. Ten students will be
eligible for additional training in environmental
sampling. Students will be recruited from the
Renewal Community of the City of Lawrence.
Placement of graduates in environmental jobs will
be assisted by the Valleyworks Career Center and
an employer advisory committee established to
support the job training program.
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 1 Brownfields Team
(617) 918-1424
EPA Region 1 Brownfields Web site
(http://www.epa.gov/regionl/bro wnfields )
Grant Recipient: Merrimack Valley Workforce
Investment Board,MA
(978) 682-7099
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-04-010
Protection Agency	Response (5105T)	June 2004
Washington, DC 20450	Kesponse (si us )

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