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 clean up and revitalize brownfield sites. Under this law, EPA provides financial assistance to eligible applicants through five competitive grant programs: Multipurpose Grants, Assessment Grants, Revolving Loan Fund Grants, Cleanup Grants, and Environmental Workforce Development 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 and train unemployed and underemployed residents from solid and hazardous waste-impacted communities and place them in environmental jobs. To date, EPA has funded 305 job training grants totaling over $63 million through the Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training program. As of October 2019, more than 18,300 individuals have completed training, and of those, almost 13,700 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 75% since the program was created in 1998.
$200,000.00
EPA has selected the City of Pittsburg for an Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training grant. The City of Pittsburg plans to train 80 students and place at least 51 graduates in environmental jobs. The core training program includes 520 hours of instruction in 40-hour HAZWOPER, refinery safety, all-terrain forklift, solar technology, emergency response, confined space entry, traffic control/flagger, OSHA 10, CPR/first aid, and the Home Builders Institute's construction technology. Participants who complete the training will earn three federal certifications. The City of Pittsburg is targeting low-income, unemployed, and environmentally impacted residents. Key partners include the Workforce Development Board of Contra Costa County, East Bay Leadership Council, Contra Costa Building and Construction Trades Council, GRID Alternatives, Pittsburg Arts and Community Foundation, Pittsburg Adult Education Center, Aerotek, KM Industrial, Hydrochem, TESLA, Solar City, MCE, NWEDI, Los Medanos Community College, CCC WDB, The SF Foundation, Y&H Soda Foundation, Laborers Training Trust, Iron Workers Local 378, Laborers Local 324, and Plumbers Local 159.