Brownfields 2005 Grant Fact Sheet

Oakland County, MI

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 GRANTS

$200,000 for hazardous substances
$200,000 for petroleum
EPA has selected Oakland County for two brownfields assessment grants. Hazardous substances funds will be used to support community outreach activities; inventory and select sites; and conduct Phase I, Phase II, and baseline environmental assessments on a community-wide basis. Petroleum funds will be used to support community outreach activities, inventory and develop a comprehensive database of abandoned sites that are presumed to be impacted by leaking underground storage tanks or other petroleum-related product releases, conduct Phase I and II environmental site assessments, and prepare baseline environmental assessments for proposed redevelopment.

COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION

Oakland County was selected to receive two brownfields assessment grants. Oakland County (population 1,194,156) is located in southeastern Michigan, northwest of Detroit. It encompasses nearly 908 square miles of urban, suburban, and rural land. The area's long manufacturing history has left Oakland County with many abandoned, contaminated commercial and industrial sites, including 70 closed landfills that served the Detroit industrial economy and more than 900 leaking underground storage tanks. Several of the distressed communities impacted by these conditions, especially the City of Pontiac and the South End communities, have high unemployment, declining general populations, and increasing minority populations. These older urban core communities are especially affected by the concentrated industrial activity and contamination. Oakland County also is at the headwaters of five rivers and 1,400 natural lakes and waterways. Water quality and the reduction of runoff and groundwater contamination are major concerns for the area, especially in light of the number of homes that rely on private water systems. Assessment and cleanup of the brownfields will allow the county to expand and continue its efforts to assist, encourage, and facilitate the redevelopment of these sites to meet the needs of its residents.

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 5 Brownfields Team
312-886-7576
http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields/

Grant Recipient: Oakland County, MI
248-858-8073

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