WAYNESBURG – The Biden administration announced Thursday that more than $254 million will be allocated to 265 communities to clean up and redevelop contaminated areas, known as brownfield sites, which contain hazardous substances or other pollutants like asbestos, lead and other dangerous chemicals.
Brownfield sites can include abandoned industrial mines or factories, landfills, gas stations or even some former residential areas. There are more than 450,000 of these sites across the United States, according to the EPA.
Greene County will be receiving two competitive grants through this brownfields program. A Community-wide Assessment of Brownfield Sites Grant of $500,000 will provide additional funding to continue assessing potentially contaminated sites throughout Greene County. An existing inventory of sites which will be reviewed/updated provides potential projects for future clean up and redevelopment. Phase I and Phase II assessments can be completed for sites that show promise for development.
A Phase I primarily assesses the likelihood that a site is contaminated through visual observations, historical use reviews and regulatory records, while a Phase II assesses whether contamination is in fact present.
The second award of an additional $500,000 is a Cleanup Grant which will be applied in Morgan Township toward railroad ties in Mather. This grant will remove and dispose of as many ties as funds will allow.
To learn more or add properties to the County’s inventory, citizens are welcome to attend the Greene County Brownfield Redevelopment Advisory Committee (GC-BRAC) meetings. The committee meets quarterly with the next meeting taking place June 14, 2022. For more information contact the Greene County Planning and Community Development at (724) 852-5260.