A \ Brownfields 2009 Assessment Grant Fact Sheet Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments 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 February 17, 2009, President Barack Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The Recovery Act is an unprecedented effort to jumpstart our economy, and create or save millions of jobs. This law provided stimulus funds to the Brownfields Program to award grants to evaluate and clean up former industrial and commercial sites. Under this law, EPA will provide financial assistance to eligible applicants through four competitive grant programs: assessment grants, revolving loan fund grants, cleanup grants, and job training grants. Community Description The Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments was selected to receive a brownfields assessment coalition grant. The Council's coalition partners are the Cities of Grants and Farmington, the Village of Milan, and McKinley County (combined population 207,154). Northwest New Mexico has significant environmental and human health concerns from former uranium and coal mining operations, oil and gas exploration, and leaking underground storage tanks. There are 48 abandoned uranium mines in McKinley County. The county also contains three active and three abandoned coal mines. Mining operations pose a continuing threat to groundwater, a vital resource in this high desert region. The perception of contamination throughout the area has stifled economic development. The median household income is less than the statewide average, and one-third of the population lives in poverty. Over 60 percent of residents are minorities. Assessment of brownfields is expected to enable the coalition to effectively evaluate each site's potential for cleanup and redevelopment. Assessment Grant $600,000 for hazardous substances (Recovery Act Funding) $400,000 for petroleum (Recovery Act Funding) EPA has selected the Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments for a brownfields assessment coalition grant. Community-wide hazardous substances grant funds will be used to conduct 41 Phase I and 14 Phase II environmental site assessments. Petroleum grant funds will be used to conduct 32 Phase I and 11 Phase II environmental site assessments. Grant funds also will be used for cleanup planning, health monitoring, and community outreach activities. 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/brownfields) Grant Recipient: Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments (505) 722-4327 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-09-176 nil- a ancl Emergency .. Protection Agency Response (5105T) MaV09 Washington, DC 20450 ^ v ' ------- |