WVU Today
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Center at West Virginia University will assess, clean up and redevelop environmentally contaminated sites across the Mountain State thanks to $2.8 million in grants from the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
“We know this investment from the EPA will help spark further investment from the public and private sectors,” said Patrick Kirby, director of the Northern West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Center at WVU.
The funding will support work at WVU and Marshall University to revitalize former industrial sites and promote economic development in West Virginia.
The EPA Brownfield Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup grants are targeted to help underserved and economically disadvantaged communities where environmental cleanup and new jobs are critical for driving economic revitalization. Six projects were awarded funding in this round.
“The West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Centers work hard to assist these communities,” Kirby said. “We look forward to seeing the positive results of these projects.”
• The Southern Coal Camp Authority in Delbarton was awarded the state’s only Cleanup grant in this round of funding. This $200,000 grant will be used to clean up the former Burch High School/Middle School, which has served both as a school as well as a storage location for the Town of Delbarton. Grant funds will help remediate contamination at the 1.1-acre site, as well as to create redevelopment plans and conduct community outreach activities.
• The City of Fairmont and Fayette County each received a $200,000 Community-Wide Assessment grant. Assessment funds can be used to conduct environmental site assessments on multiple sites within a community, as well as to develop site reuse plans, prioritize sites, and to conduct community outreach.
• The Region 2 Planning and Development Council received a $600,000 Coalition Assessment grant, which encourages collaboration across multiple organizations for site assessments and reuse planning. Region 2 will be partnering with the Regional Intergovernmental Council and the West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Center at Marshall University on this grant.
• The Cities of Huntington and Weirton were each awarded $800,000 Revolving Loan Fund Grants. The RLF program is a highly competitive program that allows communities to provide loans and subgrants for cleanup activities, adding more incentives for businesses to remediate brownfields.
For more information on the West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Centers, visitwww.wvbrownfields.org.
For more information on EPA’s Brownfields Program: https://www.epa.gov/brownfields
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