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EPA Announces $650,000 Grant to Clean Up Contaminated Sites in Southeast Michigan; State to Receive a Total $3.2 Million in Grants and Loans

Release Date: 05/31/2012
Contact Information: Francisco Arcaute, 312-886-7613, [email protected]

For Immediate Release No. 12-OPA040

EPA Announces $650,000 Grant to Clean Up Contaminated Sites in Southeast Michigan; State to Receive a Total $3.2 Million in Grants and Loans

(CHICAGO – May 31, 2012) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Regional Administrator Susan Hedman today joined Mayor John B. O’Reilly at the Dearborn City Building to announce a $650,000 grant to redevelop contaminated properties, create jobs and protect public health in Southeast Michigan. This EPA 2012 “brownfield” grant will be awarded to the Downriver Community Conference to continue and expand its work to assess and clean up abandoned industrial and commercial properties.

Since 1997, EPA has provided $2.6 million in grants to the Downriver Community Conference to assess brownfield sites. This EPA funding led to 25 cleanups and 50 redevelopment projects, leveraging more than $300 million in private and public investment. So far, more than 3,300 jobs and 75 acres of green space have been created.

“EPA’s 2012 grant to the Downriver Community Conference will continue to spur redevelopment in Southeast Michigan,” said EPA Region 5 Administrator Susan Hedman. “EPA’s brownfield grants throughout Michigan will help prepare contaminated properties for productive uses.”

Downriver will use the 2012 grant to assess:

· Former automotive facilities in Monroe and Ypsilanti.

· The former McLouth Steel Products site in Trenton.

· A former engine manufacturing plant in Tecumseh.

· A former paper mill in Monroe.

“The EPA’s Revolving Loan Fund Brownfield Program has a tremendous economic impact to our region,” said Tom Russow, Chairman of the Downriver Community Conference Brownfield Consortium. “We have brought sites that had no value to value added through the creation of the several hundred jobs in manufacturing and service industries.”

“The City of Dearborn has benefitted from the EPA’s funding to the Downriver Community Conference’s Brownfield Consortium in the past through the development of the successful Dearborn Town Center,” said Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr. “In these difficult budget times, additional resources from the EPA for our area are welcome.”

Nationwide, EPA will provide $69.3 million for brownfield grants and loans this year. Michigan will receive a total of $3.2 million to be distributed as follows:

o Battle Creek will receive a $650,000 Revolving Loan Fund grant to clean up contaminated sites.
o The Lansing Brownfield Redevelopment Authority will receive a $400,000 award for up to 28 environmental assessments.
o Mecosta County will receive a $400,000 assessment award for 20 environmental assessments cleanup plans.
o Mt. Pleasant will receive a $200,000 cleanup grant for the former Mt. Pleasant Regional Center.
o Jackson will receive a $400,000 Revolving Loan Fund grant.
o Wayne County will be receiving $500,000 RLF grant.

See a list of all awarded brownfield grants by state: https://cfpub.epa.gov/bf_factsheets/

More information on EPA’s brownfields program: www.epa.gov/brownfields/

More information on brownfields success stories: www.epa.gov/brownfields/success/index.htm