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. The Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act of 2002, as amended by the Brownfields Utilization, Investment and Local Development Act of 2018, was passed to help states and communities around the country cleanup and revitalize brownfields sites. 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.
Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training grant funds are provided to nonprofit organizations and other eligible entities to recruit, train, and place residents from solid and hazardous waste-impacted communities, including low-income and minority, unemployed, and underemployed individuals. To date, EPA has funded 288 job training grants totaling over $60 million through the Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training program. As of May 2018, more than 17,100 individuals have completed training, and of those, almost 12,500 have obtained employment in the environmental field, an average starting wage of over $14 an hour. This equates to a cumulative placement rate of approximately 73% since the program was created in 1998.
$200,000
EPA has selected Alaska Forum, Inc. for an Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training grant. Alaska Forum, Inc. plans to train 60 students and place at least 43 graduates in environmental jobs. The core training program includes 422 hours of instruction in: 40-hour HAZWOPER, OSHA 10-hour construction, confined space/entry, first aid/CPR/survival, North Slope training cooperative unescorted, Alaska qualified sampler training, driving safety, GPS/GIS in environmental field work, lead awareness, asbestos awareness, energy isolation/fall protection, forklift operation, hazardous materials awareness, Freon removal and handling, asbestos handler and worker, OSHA 2015 hazardous materials, MSHA awareness, wilderness first aid, air craft/field safety, bear/firearm safety, Alaska certified erosion and sediment control lead, OSHA disaster site worker, shipping and transportation DOT/IATA, trenching and excavating, incident command system 100 and 200, NIMS IS 700/706, HAZWOPER refresher, IS-5.A: an introduction to hazardous materials, OSHA 7107 evacuation and emergency planning, hazardous communication, home fuel tank inspection and maintenance, indoor air quality sampling and monitoring, respiratory fitness testing, recycling health and safety, small boat operation, maintenance, safety, and ATV/ORV operation, maintenance, safety. Participants who complete the training will earn 23 federal certifications and five state certifications. Alaska Forum, Inc. is targeting unemployed and underemployed, low-income residents in rural areas throughout the state of Alaska. Key partners include Ilisgvik College Department of Workforce Development (WFD), CH2M Hill, Cook Inlet Tribal Council, UMIAQ Environmental, Stantec, Knik Tribal Council, Kodiak Island Borough, Matanuska-Susitna Borough, and the Municipality of Anchorage.