EPA Announces Jefferson Parish Economic Development Commission to Receive $600,000 in Brownfields As

EPA Announces Jefferson Parish Economic Development Commission to Receive $600,000 in Brownfields Assessment Funding

The grant awards help underserved communities across the country Build Back Better and address Environmental Justice concerns

Media contacts: Jennah Durant at [email protected] or 214 665-2200

DALLAS – (June 10, 2021) Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Jefferson Parish Economic Development Commission (JEDCO) is among the 151 recipients of 154 grant awards totaling $66.5 million in Brownfields funding through its Multipurpose, Assessment, and Cleanup (MAC) Grants. JEDCO plans to use their $600,000 assessment coalition grant to develop a web-based inventory of sites, conduct environmental site assessments, prepare cleanup plans. Activities will focus on sites along the west bank of the Mississippi River in Jefferson Parish, which includes two Qualified Opportunity Zones. Priority sites include a 46-acre industrial tract and the Gulf State Asphalt Facility in Westwego, and the Johns Manville Plant, the former Lowery Brothers Rigging Center, and the former Ramrod Trucking Facility in other parts of Jefferson Parish. Coalition partners are Jefferson Parish and the City of Westwego.

This funding will support underserved and economically disadvantaged communities across the country in assessing and cleaning up contaminated and abandoned industrial and commercial properties. Approximately 50 percent of selected recipients are receiving EPA Brownfields grant funding for the first time and more than 85 percent serve small communities.

“Through our Brownfields Program, EPA is delivering on the Biden Administration’s commitment to lifting up and protecting overburdened communities across America, especially communities that have experienced long periods of disinvestment and decay,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “These assessment and cleanup grants will not only support economic growth and job creation, but they will also empower communities to address the environmental, public health, and social issues associated with contaminated land.”

“Brownfields assessment and cleanup grants help cities across the country revitalize abandoned properties, which can be a starting point for empowering entire communities,” said Acting Regional Administrator David Gray. “EPA is proud to support JEDCO in their efforts to revitalize Jefferson Parish neighborhoods and properties near the Mississippi.”

“Procuring these funds represents a significant value for Jefferson Parish and JEDCO. The national EPA Brownfield Assessment Coalition Grant will position underserved areas with tremendous growth potential for revitalization, investment, and job creation in sustainable industries on the West Bank of Jefferson Parish,” said JEDCO President and CEO Jerry Bologna. “We are honored to use these funds to support our economy, serve our residents, and achieve ambitious goals to reinvigorate long-dormant properties in our community.”

“Our Brownfields team and JEDCO have been hard at work in Jefferson Parish, identifying Brownfields sites. This grant will help fund environmental assessments and cleanup plans to move priority sites closer to returning to productive use,” said LDEQ Secretary Dr. Chuck Carr Brown.

Today’s grant announcement includes:

• $8.8 million for 11 Multipurpose Grants, which will provide funding to conduct a range of eligible assessment and cleanup activities at one or more brownfield sites in a target area. 

• $42.2 million for 107 Assessment Grants, which will provide funding for brownfield inventories, planning, environmental assessments, and community outreach.

• $15.5 million for 36 Cleanup Grants, which will provide funding to carry out cleanup activities at brownfield sites owned by the recipient.

The list of the fiscal year 2021 applicants selected for funding is available here: https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/applicants-selected-fy-2021-brownfields-multipurpose-assessment-and-cleanup-grants

EPA anticipates that it will award the grants once all legal and administrative requirements are satisfied by the selected recipients.

Since its inception in 1995, EPA’s Brownfields Program has provided nearly $1.76 billion in grants to assess and clean up contaminated properties and return them to productive reuse. This has led to significant benefits for communities across the country. For example:

• To date, communities participating in the Brownfields Program have been able to attract more than $34.4 billion in cleanup and redevelopment funding after receiving Brownfields funds. This has led to over 175,500 jobs in cleanup, construction, and redevelopment.

• Based on grant recipient reporting, recipients leveraged on average $20.13 for each EPA Brownfields dollar and 10.3 jobs per $100,000 of EPA Brownfield Grant funds expended on assessment, cleanup, and revolving loan fund cooperative agreements.

• In addition, an academic peer-reviewed study has found that residential properties near brownfield sites increased in value by 5% to 15.2% as a result of cleanup activities.

• Finally, analyzing data near 48 brownfields, EPA found an estimated $29 million to $97 million in additional tax revenue for local governments in a single year after cleanup—2 to 7 times more than the $12.4 million EPA contributed to the cleanup of those brownfield sites.

For more on the Brownfields Grants: https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/types-epa-brownfield-grant-funding

For more on EPA’s Brownfields Program: https://www.epa.gov/brownfields
 

Connect with EPA Region 6:

On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eparegion6 

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/EPAregion6

Activities in EPA Region 6: https://www.epa.gov/aboutepa/epa-region-6-south-central

# # #