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Brownfields 2008 Grant Fact Sheet
Land-of-Sky Regional Council, Western North Carolina
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 this 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 the Land-of-Sky Regional Council for two brownfields assessment grants. Hazardous substances grant funds will be used to identify and prioritize brownfields in the region and perform four to six Phase I and II environmental site assessments. Grant funds also will be used to support community outreach activities. Petroleum grant funds will be used to perform the same tasks at sites with potential petroleum contamination.
COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION
The Land-of-Sky Regional Council was selected to receive two brownfields assessment grants. Located in western North Carolina, the Land-of-Sky Regional Council serves Buncombe, Henderson, Madison, and Transylvania Counties (population 344,472). This mountainous region is under pressure to accommodate development for the area's growing population of tourists and retirees. To prevent building on greenfields, the council is focused on reusing abandoned former industrial sites. Many brownfields are the result of a steady loss of manufacturing. Over the last 30 years, the number of manufacturing jobs has decreased significantly. Assessment of brownfields is expected to facilitate cleanup and generate interest in reuse, which will preserve undeveloped land and reduce urban sprawl.
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.
EPA Region 4 Brownfields Team
404-562-8792
EPA Region 4 Brownfields web site
Grant Recipient: Land-of-Sky Regional Council, NC
828-251-6622
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.