Governor Kathy Hochul today announced over $23 million has been awarded to support 101 communities across the state through part of Round XIII of the Regional Economic Development Council Initiative. The award will help promote smart, sustainable and equitable community planning, development and construction of projects that focus on accessible economic, community, environmental and recreational improvements in all New York’s regions.

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EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights announces the largest single investment in environmental justice in history, funded by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act

November 21, 2023

Contact Information

EPA Press Office (press@epa.gov)

WASHINGTON — Today, the Biden-Harris administration announced approximately $2 billion in funding available to support community-driven projects that deploy clean energy, strengthen climate resilience, and build capacity for communities to tackle environmental and climate justice challenges. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Community Change Grants are the single largest investment in environmental justice going directly to communities in history, and will advance collaborative efforts to achieve a healthier, safer, and more prosperous future for all. These funds, part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, are made possible by the President’s Inflation Reduction Act—the biggest-ever investment in clean energy and climate action.

“Throughout my Journey to Justice tour, I’ve heard from residents and advocates calling for resources to support local solutions in communities that have long been overlooked and forgotten,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Today, thanks to President Biden’s commitment to investing in communities that have long struggled to access federal funding, we are delivering on these calls to action. This historic, unprecedented funding has the promise to turn disadvantaged and overburdened areas into healthy, resilient, and thriving communities for current and future generations.”

“For far too long, communities that have borne the brunt of power plant and industrial pollution have been left out and left behind,” said John Podesta, Senior Advisor to the President for Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation. “The Inflation Reduction Act and President Biden’s Justice40 initiative change that by bringing new investment, clean energy, and good-paying jobs to disadvantaged communities.”

“President Biden is leading a whole-of-government effort to confront longstanding environmental injustices and inequities,” said White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallory. “Thanks to this historic funding covered under the President’s Justice40 Initiative, we are investing in locally-driven solutions to make a positive difference for communities that have suffered from pollution, underinvestment, and decades of disproportionate environmental impacts. Investments like these show how we are delivering on the President’s ambitious environmental justice agenda and his commitment to build more equitable and resilient communities for generations to come.”

The Community Change Grants deliver on President Biden's historic commitment to advance equity and justice, including his Justice40 Initiative. The Community Change Grants will deliver 100 percent of the benefits of this program to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution. This program also dedicates $200 million of Inflation Reduction Act funding to provide technical assistance to applicants and grant recipients, which will enhance the ability of disadvantaged communities to access resources for environmental and climate justice activities.

The activities to be performed under the grants are expected to fall under the following categories:

Climate resiliency and adaptation.

Mitigating climate and health risks from urban heat islands, extreme heat, wood heater emissions, and wildfire events.

Community-led air and other (including water and waste) pollution monitoring, prevention, and remediation.

Investments in low- and zero-emission and resilient technologies and related infrastructure.

Workforce development that supports the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and other air pollutants.

Reducing indoor toxics and indoor air pollution.

Facilitating the engagement of disadvantaged communities in state and federal advisory groups, workshops, rulemakings, and other public processes.

The Community Change Grants Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), administered through the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights (OEJECR), has several unique characteristics to advance environmental and climate justice, many of which are responsive to feedback and input the agency has heard from communities. These include: 

Rolling Applications: The NOFO will be open for a year, closing on November 21, 2024, and EPA will review applications on a rolling basis. This allows applicants to utilize technical assistance and possibly resubmit a new application if not initially selected. EPA encourages applicants to apply as early as possible.

Two-track Submission Processes: Applications can be submitted under two separate tracks depending on the project scope and funding requested.

Track I, Community-Driven Investments for Change, is expected to award approximately $1.96 billion for 150 projects for $10-20 million each.

Track II, Meaningful Engagement for Equitable Governance, is expected to award approximately $40 million for 20 projects for $1-3 million each.

Oral Presentations: Track I applicants may also be invited to participate in an oral presentation. These oral presentations will enable EPA reviewers to hear directly from the applicants and their partners to learn more about community priorities, desired outcomes, and plans for long-term sustainability. This new format is responsive to community requests to engage with EPA in more accessible ways.

Target Investment Areas: Out of the $2 billion in funding, EPA has identified five Target Investment Areas (TIA) to help ensure that communities with unique circumstances, geography, and needs can equitably compete for funding. These are:

Tribes in Alaska: $150 million for projects benefitting Indian Tribes in Alaska including funds for cleanup of contaminated lands.

Tribes: $300 million for projects benefitting Tribal communities in the other states. 

Territories: $50 million for projects benefitting disadvantaged communities in the United States’ territories of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Disadvantaged Unincorporated Communities: $50 million for projects benefitting small and rural areas that lack fixed, legally determined geographic boundaries, such as Colonias.

U.S.-Southern Border Communities: Consistent with EPA’s longstanding commitment to addressing transborder pollution challenges, $100 million for projects benefitting non-Tribal disadvantaged communities within 100 kilometers north of the U.S.-Mexico border.

Technical Assistance: The $200 million for technical assistance is available in direct response to feedback from communities and environmental justice leaders who have long called for capacity building support for communities and their partners as they work to access critical federal resources. With this funding, there are two TA programs dedicated for the Community Change Grants. Applicants can learn more about, and express interest in, the technical assistance on EPA’s Community Change Grants Technical Assistance webpage.

Read the Community Change Grants NOFO.

OEJECR will also host multiple informational webinars while the NOFO is open, with the first being held on December 7, 2023. These webinars will address questions, and some may facilitate the formation of partnerships and information sharing. More information on upcoming webinars can be found on EPA’s Inflation Reduction Act Community Change Grants Program webpage.

Learn more about environmental justice at EPA

Learn more about Inflation Reduction funding at EPA

For up-to-date information about the NOFO, including information on the webinars, subscribe to the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights’ listserv by sending a blank email to: join-epa-ej@lists.epa.gov. Follow OEJECR on X (formerly Twitter): @EPAEnvJustice.

Background

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) created the Environmental and Climate Justice Program, the largest investment in environmental and climate justice in U.S. history when it was signed into law by President Biden on August 16, 2022. Under this program, EPA was provided $3 billion to award grants and fund related technical assistance to benefit disadvantaged communities. 

Earlier in 2023, EPA issued a Request for Information, held a dedicated consultation with EPA’s National Environmental Justice Advisory Council, and hosted multiple webinars to gain public input on innovative strategies and approaches for competition design, community engagement, equitable distribution of financial resources, grantee eligibility for funding, capacity-building and outreach, and more. This feedback was crucial in designing key elements of the Community Change Grants and this NOFO, including the Target Investment Areas, incorporating oral presentations, the rolling application period, and more. EPA thanks everyone for their incredibly valuable time and input, which ensured the creation of a more inclusive and accessible grant program.

The Portland Generating Station in Upper Mount Bethel, Pa., opened in 1958 and operated as a coal-fired power plant until 2015 when the facility’s boilers were shut down under a court agreement with then-owner NRG Energy. The reason? Pollution and environmental concerns. Since then, the plant remained dormant, “as an eyesore on the Delaware River,” according to Lou Pektor, president of River Pointe Commerce Park, the company that took over the 162-acre site and the adjacent 640 acres in 2021 with the intent to build a massive industrial campus over the next decade.

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By Daviid M. Zimmer, NorthJersey.com

Nearly two years since the delayed $18 million surface contamination cleanup started at the Ringwood Mines Superfund site, a finish line remains months away.

The project, which started in November 2021 and was expected to take one year to complete, has been mired in delays stemming from faulty survey data. Officials at de maximis inc., the firm hired by Ford Motor Co. to coordinate the cleanup, said work could nonetheless resume on the soil cap for the borough-owned O?Connor Disposal Area landfill later in October or November, records show.

Geotextile caps have already been installed at the site's two other areas of concern, the Cannon Mine and Peter's Mine pits. Used along with the disposal area to dump paint sludge, chemical solvents and other toxic waste from Ford?s former Mahwah factory, the pits were initially part of a working network of iron mines.

For the entire article, see
https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/passaic/ringwood/2023/10/16/ringwood-mines-superfund-site-delays-surface-cleanup/71147910007/

October 17, 2023

Contact Information

Vikram Lakshmanan (lakshmanan.vikram@epa.gov)

(617) 918-1017

BOSTON (Oct. 17, 2023) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has selected a cleanup plan for the Keddy Mill Superfund site, located on Depot Street in Windham, Maine. EPA will clean up the soil, sediment, and groundwater at the site.

The cleanup plan is based on EPA's Remedial Investigation Report, human health and ecological risk assessments, the Feasibility Study, and comments received on EPA's Proposed Plan during a 30-day public comment period. This cleanup plan is formally called a Record of Decision.

"EPA's cleanup plan for the Keddy Mill Superfund Site is a strong effort to ensure the health and safety of community members, protecting them for generations to come." said EPA New England Regional Administrator David W. Cash. "Cleaning up Superfund sites helps us ensure that no community, no family, and no child has to face exposure to chemicals and other dangerous substances in their day to day lives."

"The Town is very pleased with the recently approved comprehensive cleanup plan and remedial alternatives for the Keddy Mill Superfund Site. Working with the EPA, local residents and the State to achieve this milestone in planning the restoration for this site is exciting. This plan protects the human health or welfare of residents, the environment from actual or threatened releases of hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants into the environment." said Windham Town Manager Barry Tibbetts. 

"The Maine DEP is pleased to continue working with our partners at EPA and the citizens of Windham to address historical contamination at the Keddy Mill, eliminating the threats to public health and the environment and returning the property to a productive future," said Maine Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Melanie Loyzim.

EPA's cleanup plan will take two to four years to design and execute and will take place after the significant completion of a Removal Action to demolish the mill complex and associated structures. The cleanup plan includes the following components:

• Excavation and off-site disposal of contaminated soil and debris from the Mill Complex property;
• Targeted treatment of soil (within the footprint of the excavation) with amendments in support of groundwater cleanup;
• In situ (in place) treatment of groundwater contaminants;
• Excavation and off-site disposal of contaminated sediments from the Presumpscot River;
• Treatment of water generated from soil and sediment dewatering and removed from excavations based on applicable water discharge standards, as required;
• Restoration of the portions of the Presumpscot River altered by the remedial action;
• Land use restrictions to prevent exposure to site-related contaminants in groundwater and fish tissue until cleanup levels are met,
• Inspections and operation and maintenance;
• Monitoring of groundwater and fish tissue to evaluate the achievement of cleanup levels; and
• Five-Year Reviews to assess the protectiveness of the remedy.

EPA estimates that the total cost of this portion of the project, including construction, operation and maintenance, and long-term monitoring, will be around $17 million.

Background

EPA added the Keddy Mill Superfund Site to the Superfund National Priorities List in 2014. The site consists of a 6.93-acre abandoned mill complex property, located at 7 Depot Street (the Mill Complex Property), an adjacent reach of the Presumpscot River, and associated riparian properties in Windham, Maine.

The site has a long history, with operations beginning in the late 1700s and ending in 1997. The building that will be demolished and removed was used as a grist and carding mill, pulp mill, box-board manufacturing facility and as a steel mill. Throughout the industrial history, several buildings have been demolished and others added to the mill complex. The site has contamination from various hazardous substances, including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), heavy metals and petroleum hydrocarbons.

More information:

A copy of the cleanup plan, the Administrative Record supporting the cleanup plan, and other background information about the Keddy Mill Superfund Site can be found at: www.epa.gov/superfund/keddy

The Windham Public Library, located at 217 Windham Center Road, Windham, Maine 04062 (phone: 207-892-1908) can be used as a point of access to reach the online Administrative Record for the site. If you would like a copy of the cleanup plan mailed to you, please contact EPA Community Involvement Coordinator, Charlotte Gray, at gray.charlotte@epa.gov or 617-918-1243. toll-free 1-888-372-7341 ext. 8-1243.

Record of Decision Administrative Record:
https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/SiteProfiles/index.cfm?fuseaction=second.ars&id=0106078&doc=Y&colid=67421&region=01&type=AR

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Environmental advocates have expressed concerns that proposed budget cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may slow down the cleanup of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly referred to as “forever chemicals,” in public drinking water and military sites, both in Maryland and across the United States. 

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Decades ago, many upstate downtown areas were hotbeds for economic activity. Today you can find those same areas with old, vacant buildings with many opportunities for growth.

The state works with communities to provide funding through the Brownfield Opportunity Area Program.

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October 12, 2023

Contact Information

R3 Press (r3press@epa.gov)

PITTSBURGH (October 12, 2023) - Following a May announcement that over $14 million in Brownfields funding was being awarded in Pennsylvania, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz joined local environmental and community leaders in Pittsburgh today to celebrate the historic investment.

Awarded through the Multipurpose, Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund and Cleanup (MARC) Grant Program, the North Side Industrial Development Company (NSIDC) and the Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh (YPA) will collectively invest $1 million in the Greater Pittsburgh area to conduct 30 Phase I and 23 Phase II environmental site assessments, prepare seven cleanup plans, and conduct community outreach and engagement activities that will help transform sites back into safe and productive reuse.

“EPA’s Brownfields grants have transformed neighborhoods across the country, and thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Allegheny County is seeing more money than ever invested in assessing and cleaning up abandoned properties,” said EPA Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz. “These assessment grants are often the first step towards cleaner, greener, and safer spaces and EPA is proud to play a role in that.”

Announced at a site on Perrysville Avenue in the Perry Hilltop Neighborhood of the City, EPA joined leaders from NSIDC and YPA, along with city, county, and local stakeholders to celebrate this investment and look towards the future. The site, while presently vacant, is expected to one day be a community center and day care. As part of the Urban Development Authority’s Avenues of Hope program, Perrysville Avenue will also leverage federal American Rescue Plan Act dollars to transform the corridor into a vibrant, safe, diverse, and culture-rich hub.

"Our team at NSIDC is very excited to continue our economic development work utilizing this $500,000 EPA Brownfield Assessment Grant throughout the Pittsburgh region. It's these types of investments from the Federal Government that allows forgotten communities to be a part of equitable growth of the economy,"  said Juan Garrett, Executive Director, North Side Industrial Development Company.

As part of President’s Biden’s Investing in America Agenda to grow the American economy from the bottom up and middle out – EPA’s Brownfields Program is helping more communities than ever before begin to address the economic, social, and environmental challenges caused by brownfields and stimulate economic opportunity and environmental reutilization in historically overburdened communities.

“Young Preservationists Association (YPA) is honored to stand with EPA as a conduit of these resources that will be of service to so many. Our sincerest thanks go to the Mayor of McKeesport, Mike Cherepko, and his team for their partnering with us on this important work and for their belief in our mission of economic development through historic preservation. In addition to our thanks to the EPA we would also like to thank our Board of Directors and the Allegheny Foundation for their kind and generous support," said Matthew Craig, Executive Director of the Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh.

"This monumental investment by the EPA in the Greater Pittsburgh area underscores the importance of collective action, converging government and community organizations, to revitalize and repurpose our brownfield sites. As we witness these funds coming into our communities, we are not just seeing the physical transformation of neglected spaces, but also sewing the seeds of opportunity, sustainability, and environmental justice into the very fabric of our neighborhoods. It is crucial that we continue to channel our energies and resources into initiatives like the MARC Grant Program, ensuring that all communities, especially those that have borne the brunt of economic and environmental disparities, are given the chance to flourish. The collaborative work we engage in today is paving the way for a greener, more equitable tomorrow for the people of Western Pennsylvania,” said U.S. Congresswoman Summer Lee.

Many communities that are under economic stress, particularly those located in areas that have experienced long periods of disinvestment, lack the resources needed to initiate brownfield cleanup and redevelopment projects. As brownfield sites are transformed into community assets, they attract jobs, promote economic revitalization and transform communities into sustainable and environmentally just places.

“The EPA Brownfields Program is a great example of what happens when government and non-profits work together to provide economic re-birth to neighborhoods and communities that have long been neglected. Thanks to the Biden Administration, who believe that stabilization and expansion of communities take place from the bottom up and middle out this initiative is possible. I can’t wait to see what develops through the initial investment by the North Side Industrial Develop Company (NSIDC) and Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh (YAA). Through reclaiming land and putting it to good use, we reclaim neighborhoods and residents,” said Mayor of Pittsburgh Ed Gainey.  

EPA Brownfields Job Training Grants, funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, build a skilled environmental workforce in overburdened communities

October 12, 2023

Contact Information

R3 Press (R3press@epa.gov)

PITTSBURGH (October 12, 2023) – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz visited the Beechview-Seldom Seen Greenway in Pittsburgh today to witness firsthand the work of Landforce, a land stewardship and workforce development organization. 

EPA Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz stands with Brownfields Job Training Grant Program graduates.

Landforce is one of two Allegheny County organizations selected by EPA for funding under its fiscal year 2023 Brownfields Job Training Grant competition.  EPA selected Landforce and Auberle to each receive approximately $500,000 to recruit, train, and retain local, skilled individuals.  The recruitments will prioritize unemployed or under-employed adults who have faced barriers to stable, family- sustaining employment. 

“The Brownfields Job Training Grant Program not only improves communities, it has the power to change lives,” said EPA Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz.“Graduates develop the skills needed to secure full-time, sustainable employment in the environmental field - a win across the board.”

Established in 2015, Landforce has received a total of $700,000 from two EPA brownfield remediation and workforce development multi-year grants to recruit and train adults with barriers to employment, using a rigorously designed curriculum that covers both hard and soft skills, combined with actual employment stewarding Pittsburgh's degraded lands. 

In the past eight years, Landforce has trained 147 people and brought 126 of them on as crew members. In addition to this year’s job training grant, they are also the recipient of a $149,336 Solid Waste Infrastructure Grant, which will allow them to divert 625 tons of urban wood waste annually from landfills. 

“We’re grateful for federal investments from our partners at US EPA for helping us turn a vision into a reality. With these funds, not only can we continue our current programming - we can now expand to year-round opportunities. In addition to job training, our portfolio will now include the full life cycle management of trees, diverting wood waste from landfills, and giving fallen trees new life,” said Ilyssa Manspeizer, Ph.D. Executive Director, Landforce.

Based in McKeesport, Auberle plans to train 130 students and place at least 95 in environmental jobs amongst their 130 employing partners and 100 referral agencies through the region. The training program includes 115 hours of instruction in 40-Hour HAZWOPER, 32-Hour Asbestos, Lead Renovation and Repair, Confined Space Entry, OSHA-10, Bloodborne Pathogens, and CPR/ First Aid. Students who complete the training will earn up to one state and seven federal certifications. Auberle is targeting students within Allegheny County, specifically chronically underemployed, unemployed, and at-risk individuals. 

“Auberle’s Brownfields Job Training Program changes lives by putting local people to work in places that have been impacted by industry, helping to revitalize their own communities while lifting themselves and their families out of poverty. We are grateful to the EPA for providing this impactful funding,” said Abby Wolensky, Auberle’s Director of the Employment Institute.

"Witnessing the EPA Brownfields Job Training Grants unfold at the Beechview-Seldom Seen Greenway is symbolic of the transformative, hands-on environmental and employment work occurring in Pittsburgh. Organizations like Landforce and Auberle are making our communities stronger and more resilient. They're cleaning up our environment and, at the same time, giving people who need jobs the training they need to get them. It's about taking care of our neighborhoods and each other at the same time. This is not only a revitalization of our lands, but a direct investment in our people, providing them not just with jobs, but with careers that uplift them, their families, and our communities. Together, we're fixing our environment and giving people good, strong job skills for the future. What we're doing now in Allegheny County and all over the region will make things better for our kids and grandkids, and I'm excited to help heal our environment and our neighbors at the same time," said  U.S. Congresswoman Summer Lee.

Background: 

President Biden’s leadership and bipartisan Congressional action have delivered the single-largest investment in U.S. brownfields infrastructure ever through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which invests more than $1.5 billion over five years through EPA’s highly successful Brownfields Program. The Brownfields Jobs Training Program also advances President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to deliver at least 40 percent of the benefits of certain government programs to disadvantaged communities.

The EPA’s Brownfields Job Training (JT) grant program is a unique employment and training program. The grants allow nonprofit and other eligible organizations to recruit, train, and retain a local, skilled workforce by prioritizing unemployed and under-employed, including low-income individuals living in areas impacted by solid and hazardous waste in environmental jobs. Students learn the skills and credentials needed to secure full-time, sustainable employment in the environmental field, including brownfields assessment and cleanup. These jobs reduce environmental contamination and build more sustainable futures for communities. Communities have the flexibility to deliver eligible training that meets the local labor market demands of the environmental sector in their communities.

Since 1998, EPA has awarded 400 job training grants. With these grants, more than 20,600 individuals have completed training and over 15,300 individuals have been placed in careers related to land remediation and environmental health and safety.

Learn more on EPA’s Brownfields Program.

Air quality, interagency collaboration, and community investments were among the chief concerns shared by Pennsylvanians about the commonwealth’s interim environmental justice policy at a public meeting Wednesday evening. 

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