The Association of South Central Oklahoma Governments will receive a $200,000 brownfields grant to help revitalize former industrial sites, turning them from problem properties to productive community use.

The grant was announced by the Environmental Protection Agency today and is part of more than $70 million in brownfields funding to be awarded nationwide.

“Brownfields grants help convert environmental eyesores into sources of local pride,” said EPA Regional Administrator Richard E. Greene. “These grants build on EPA’s commitment of working with communities to hand down a healthier, more prosperous future to the next generation.”

Brownfields are vacant, abandoned, or under-used properties where redevelopment may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant.

The Association of South Central Oklahoma Governments was selected for a brownfields assessment grant for hazardous substances to evaluate nearly 30 brownfields sites within its eight-county region. Assessment of the brownfields sites is expected to pave the way for cleanup and revitalization. Grant funds will also be used to support community outreach activities.

Since the beginning of the program in 1995, EPA’s south central region has leveraged $2.3 billion in brownfields cleanup and redevelopment, helped create 10,700 jobs and resulted in the assessment of 750 properties.

This year, 202 applicants were selected to receive 294 assessment, revolving loan fund, and cleanup grants nationwide. EPA’s brownfields program encourages redevelopment of America's estimated 450,000 abandoned and contaminated waste sites. Nationally, brownfields assistance has leveraged more than $9.6 billion in cleanup and redevelopment, helped create more than 43,029 jobs and resulted in the assessment of more than 10,504 properties and the cleanup of 180 properties.

Additional information on the brownfields recipients is available at http://www.epa.gov/brownfields.

To learn more about activities in EPA Region 6, please visit www.epa.gov/region6.
(Por Dave Bary, EPA, 14/05/2007)