Brownfields 2003 Grant Fact Sheet

Carson, CA

EPA BROWNFIELDS PROGRAM

EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, communities, and other stakeholders in economic development 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.

ASSESSMENT GRANT

$200,000 for petroleum
EPA has selected the City of Carson for a brownfields assessment grant. The city intends to use grant funds to plan for and conduct targeted Phase II environmental site assessments at several sites located within the 110/405 Mixed Use Project that are potentially contaminated with petroleum products.

COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION

The City of Carson was selected to receive an assessment grant. Carson (population 89,730) is located in southern California near the City of Los Angeles. During the middle of the century, when the area was an unincorporated part of Los Angeles County, many environmentally problematic land uses went unchecked. Seventeen landfills and 88 junkyards now occupy more than 600 acres in the city. Low-income neighborhoods grew around these potentially contaminated sites, contributing to the area's economic distress. The racial makeup of the city is unique in that the African-American, Asian/Pacific Islander, and Latino populations each make up greater than 25 percent of the population. The city has been aggressively pursuing the development of a 93-acre area known as the 110/405 Mixed Use Project. This area currently houses landfills, a material waste recycling facility, and other businesses such as a nursery and auto auction facility. The area has great redevelopment potential because of its proximity to major transportation arteries. The city hopes to redevelop the site into a large-scale retail, light industrial, and entertainment complex, which will create an estimated 4,400 new 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 at: www.epa.gov/brownfields.

EPA Region 9 Brownfields Team
415-972-3188
http://www.epa.gov/region09/waste/brown/

Grant Recipient: City of Carson, CA
310-233-4800

Prior to receipt of these funds in fiscal year 2003, the City of Carson also received brownfields funding for assessment and revolving loan fund grants.

The cooperative agreement for this grant has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.