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U.S. EPA, EAST PALO ALTO KICK OFF SECOND ROUND OF TRAINING

Release Date: 1/16/1998
Contact Information: Lois Grunwald, U.S. EPA , (415) 744-1588

Jointly Released by the city of East Palo Alto, Opportunities Industrialization Center West, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
   

     (San Francisco) -- On the heels of an innovative first program, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA), the City of East Palo Alto, and Opportunities Industrialization Center West (OICW), a non-profit training center, are gearing up to offer East Palo Alto area residents more training in hazardous waste cleanup and carpentry.

     Last year, 17 students completed the first round of hands-on training -- conducted by DePaul University -- with 12 students landing jobs with local industry. U.S. EPA is hopeful that the program could become a blueprint for similar training at other contaminated sites nationwide.

     "This job training program -- the first of its kind in the nation -- shows how we can unite environmental cleanup with jobs for a local community. It works in East Palo Alto, and it could work in other cities as well," said John Wise, U.S. EPA's deputy regional administrator.  

     U.S. EPA has expanded this second round of training by providing funding to the National Brotherhood of Carpenters Health and Safety Fund through an existing grant the Carpenter's union has with the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). The Carpenters Health and Safety Fund will provide carpentry training and has contracted with DePaul University to continue to provide hazardous materials training.

     "The City of East Palo Alto is appreciative of the chance to work in partnership with federal and and community agencies to create training and employment opportunities for our residents," said Sharifa Wilson, vice-mayor of East Palo Alto and chair of the East Palo Alto Redevelopment Agency. "This effort supports the efforts of the city to improve the quality of life for all our residents."

     "The hazardous waste clean-up and carpentry skills students acquire through this superb training program will build a stronger community in East Palo Alto and will allow participants to nail down better jobs for themselves upon graduation," said Rep. Anna Eshoo. "This effort demonstrates that, far from being mutually exclusive, sound environmental policies and greater employment opportunities go hand in hand. This is a lession our entire country can learn from East Palo Alto."

     The training program will provide a total of 560 hours of carpentry and hazardous materials education beginning in March. It will cover basic carpentry techniques, cleanup methods for lead-contaminated soils, asbestos contamination and underground storage tanks, and techniques for responding to releases of hazardous substances.

     At the end of the training, students will be assisted with job placement. Graduating students have the flexibility to work in the hazardous materials field, to participate in the Carpenter's apprenticeship program, or to find employment in both fields as seasonal work fluctuates. The goals of the program are to have local firms hire students.
     
     "This project proves what can be done!," said Sharon Williams, executive director of OICW. "The level of cooperation among government and community agencies, educational institutions, and unions demonstrates the power generated by focusing on a mutual goal. Who will win? All of us -- especially those unemployed participants who are trained and employed in good, solid jobs improving their own community."
     
     The job training and placement program operates under U.S. EPA's national Brownfields Initiative, which encourages the cleanup and redevelopment of former industrial and commercial properties known as brownfields. In May 1997, the East Palo Alto Ravenswood area was designated a U.S. EPA brownfields project. Cleanup of the Ravenswood area is estimated to cost between $2 and $5 million.

     East Palo Alto area residents interested in signing up for the training program can contact Craig Jenkins with OICW at  (650)462-6300.

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