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 Hope Program for a Brownfields Job Training grant. The Hope Program plans to train 110 students and place at least 60 in environmental jobs. The training program includes 107 hours of instruction in 40-Hour HAZWOPER, Asbestos Handler, and BPI Multi-Family Building Operator. Students who complete the training will earn up to one state and two federal certifications. The Hope Program is targeting students from the South Bronx who are low-income and often lack a post-secondary education. Key partners include Brownfield Coalition of the Northeast, GEI Consultants, Inc., Lemle and Wolff, Licensed Site Remediation Professionals Association, MADDD Equities, the New York City Mayor's Office of Environmental Remediation, the New York City Brownfield Partnership, Safety Facility Services, and the Horticultural Society of New York.