EPA Awards $200,000 to N. Brookfield, Mass. for Brownfields Cleanup Work

Press release:

News Release
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
New England Regional Office
August 24, 2012

Contact: EPA Public Affairs, (617) 918-1010

EPA Awards $200,000 to N. Brookfield, Mass. for Brownfields Cleanup Work
(Boston, Mass. – August 24, 2012) – EPA is providing a $200,000 Brownfields cleanup grant to the Town of North Brookfield.  This is the fourth cleanup grant that North Brookfield has won under EPA’s competitive Brownfields grant selection process to cleanup the 5.5-acre former Aztec Asbestos Co. Site.

The cleanup work in North Brookfield has been preceded by a $1.5 million EPA Demolition removal action on the site. Subsequent to the removal action, an EPA Brownfields assessment of the site provided valuable information about what cleanup work needed to be performed at the site.  Two of the four Aztec parcels are now occupied by a new Police Station.

The goal of EPA Brownfields grants is to lead to the clean up & sustainable redevelopment of Brownfields sites, thus improving the economy and quality of life in American communities.The funding is part of more than $17 million in EPA Brownfields investments across the six New England states announced by EPA in 2012.

“EPA Brownfields funding helps strengthen the economic foundation and is a catalyst for further growth in our communities,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA New England’s office. “Cleaning and revitalizing contaminated sites helps create jobs, and can help a community to create new businesses and neighborhood centers, while making our environment cleaner and the community healthier.”

Since the beginning of EPA’s Brownfields Program, in New England alone EPA has awarded 296 assessment grants totaling $72.7 million, 62 revolving loan fund grants and supplemental funding totaling $68.4 million and 213 cleanup grants totaling $47 million.  These grant funds have paved the way for more than $1.45 billion in public and private cleanup and redevelopment investment and for 9,756 jobs in assessment, cleanup, construction and redevelopment on over 2200 sites across New England.

Nationally, the figures are impressive: As of August 2012, EPA’s Brownfields assistance has leveraged more than $18.3 billion in cleanup and redevelopment funding from a variety of public and private sources and helped create approximately 76,500 jobs. More than 18,500 properties have been assessed, and over 750 properties have been cleaned up. These investments and jobs target local, under-served and economically disadvantaged neighborhoods – places where environmental cleanups and new jobs are most needed.

More Information on EPA’s Brownfields program in New England: http://epa.gov/region1/brownfields/index.html

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