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 the Housing and Redevelopment Authorities of Cumberland County for a Brownfields Job Training Grant. The Housing and Redevelopment Authorities of Cumberland County plans to train 57 students and place at least 53 in environmental jobs. The training program includes 203 hours of instruction in 40-Hour HAZWOPER, OSHA 30 for Construction, Intro to Brownfields and Voluntary Cleanup Programs, Asbestos Inspection, Confined Space Entry, Lead-Based Paint Inspection, Stormwater Management on Brownfield Sites, Intro to Soils and Groundwater, GIS for Environmental Tech, Environmental Justice, Site Assessments - Surveying and Reporting, Sample Planning, Lab Overview, Drilling/Soil Sampling Demonstrations, Drilling/Groundwater Sampling Demonstrations, Surface Water Sampling Demonstrations, Wastewater Treatment, First Aid and CPR, Underground Storage Tank Testing, and Green Remediation. Students who complete the training will earn up to six state and federal certifications. The Housing and Redevelopment Authorities of Cumberland County is targeting students within the City of Carlisle specifically unemployed and under-employed residents and residents living near brownfield sites. Key partners include the Employment Skills Center, Borough of Carlisle, Carlisle Area School District, Shippensburg University, Frederick, Seibert and Associates Inc., Cumberland Area Economic, Development Corporation, PA CareerLink Cumberland County, Cumberland County Office of Veterans Affairs and Services, and SCPa Works.