EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, Tribal Nations, 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, Tribal Nations, 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 Brownfields Job Training Grants. Additionally, funding support is provided to state and tribal response programs through a separate mechanism.
Brownfields Job Training Grant funds are provided to nonprofit organizations and other eligible entities to recruit and train unemployed and underemployed residents from communities affected by environmental pollution, economic disinvestment, and brownfields and place them in environmental jobs. Since the program was created in 1998, EPA has funded 371 job training grants totaling over $79 million through the Brownfields Job Training program. A total of 20,341 individuals have been trained and 15,168 individuals have been placed in full-time careers related to land remediation and environmental health and safety. The average starting wage for these jobs is more than $14 an hour. This equates to a cumulative placement rate of approximately 75 percent.
$500,000.00
EPA has selected the Los Angeles Conservation Corps for a Brownfields Job Training grant. The Los Angeles Conservation Corps plans to train 96 students and place at least 80 in environmental jobs. The training program includes 262 hours of instruction in 40-Hour HAZWOPER, OSHA Construction, Confined Space Entry, Asbestos Abatement, Fall Protection, Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting, Lead Supervisor Supplemental, Mold Remediation, Lead Abatement, Environmental Specialist, Life Skills programming and work readiness, and First Aid/CPR/AED. Students who complete the training will earn up to four state and three federal certifications. The Los Angeles Conservation Corps is targeting students within the City of Los Angeles and East Los Angeles, specifically underemployed and unemployed individuals, and dislocated workers. Key partners include 100-Acre Partnership, the Canoga Park America's Job Center of California, the City of Los Angeles Brownfields Program, the City of Los Angeles Housing Department Lead Hazard Remediation Program, the Healthy Homes Collaborative, Heat and Frost Insulators Local 5, and IQ Personnel.