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 awarded 414 job training grants totaling over $100.5 million through Brownfield Job Training Programs. With these grants, more than 21,500 individuals have completed training and over 16,370 individuals have been placed in careers related to land remediation and environmental health and safety. This equates to a cumulative placement rate of approximately 75 percent. The average starting wage for these jobs is more than $15 an hour.
$500,000.00
EPA has selected Santa Fe Community College for a Brownfields Job Training Grant. Santa Fe Community College plans to train 134 students and place at least 125 in environmental jobs. The training program includes 168 hours of instruction in 40-Hour HAZWOPER, Hazardous Waste Management and RCRA, Radiation Safety, CPR/First Aid, OSHA-10, Phase I and II Environmental Assessments, Forklift Operator, Environmental Sampling, Confined Space Entry and Non-Entry Rescue, and DOT Hazmat. Students who complete the training will earn up to 11 state or federal certifications. Santa Fe Community College is targeting students within Bernalillo, Los Alamos, Santa Fe, San Miguel, Mora, Taos, and Rio Arriba counties, specifically Native Americans from the area's 17 Indian Pueblos and Tribes, veterans, disconnected youth, individuals recovering from substance use disorder, unemployed and underemployed low-income individuals, and dislocated workers. Key partners include BANDA Group International, COMPA Industries Inc., Eight Northern Indian Pueblos Council Inc.'s Office of Environmental and Technical Assistance, Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico Environment Department, Associated General Contractors of New Mexico, New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions, HELP New Mexico, Northern Area Local Workforce Development Board, YouthWorks/Youthbuild, North Central New Mexico Economic Development, and Workforce Integration Network.