WASHINGTON, D.C. (WWLP) -The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded 14 communities in Massachusetts to receive grants totaling $8,740,000 in competitive EPA Brownfields funding, including several in western Massachusetts.
The money comes from the EPA’s Multipurpose, Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup (MARC) Grant programs. The effort is part of the Biden administration’s effort to rebuild the nation’s infrastructure, support green energy development, and environmental justice.
“We’re working across the country to revitalize what were once dangerous and polluted sites in overburdened communities into more sustainable and environmentally just places that serve as community assets. Thanks to President Biden’s historic investments in America, we’re moving further and faster than ever before to clean up contaminated sites, spur economic redevelopment, and deliver relief that so many communities have been waiting for,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “This critical wave of investments is the largest in Brownfields history and will accelerate our work to protect the people and the planet by transforming what was once blight into might.”
“I’m grateful to the EPA and the Biden-Harris Administration for their significant investment in Massachusetts’ infrastructure. This unprecedented level of federal brownfields funding will help our Administration partner with local communities and regional planning agencies to clean up polluted and contaminated properties that are often in environmental justice communities. Together, we can transform these sites for beneficial uses like housing and renewable energy generation,” said Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey.
State Funding Breakdown: Brownfields Multipurpose, Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup (MARC) Grant Program Selection
- The Town of Adams has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used to conduct up environmental site assessments, complete a brownfields site inventory, and conduct community engagement activities. The target area for this grant is the Route 8 Corridor. Priority sites include former industrial properties, a former cotton manufacturing company, and a former retail facility.
The City of Chelsea has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments, conduct community engagement activities, and prepare cleanup and reuse plans. The target area for this grant is the Chelsea Creek waterfront located along Marginal Street and Eastern Avenue from the Tobin Bridge at Route 1 to Crescent Street. Priority sites include the Former Forbes Lithograph, the New England Trawler, Amoco Petroleum, Boston Hides & Furs, Seagulls Auto Sales, and the Fitzgerald Shipyard. - Franklin Regional Council of Governments, of Greenfield, Mass., has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Communitywide grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments, prepare cleanup plans, and conduct community engagement activities. The target areas for this grant are the Towns of Monroe, Orange, Turners Falls, and Greenfield. Priority sites include a former mill complex, a vacant lot, a former paper and glassine factory, and an archeological Native American site with a history as a tribal gathering place, village, and burial ground.
- Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, of Springfield, Mass., has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments, prepare cleanup plans, and conduct community engagement activities. The target area for this grant is the Town of Ware, the Downtown Historic District, and the Town of South Hadley. Priority sites include former mills and manufacturing facilities.
- The City of Springfield has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments, prepare cleanup plans, and conduct community engagement activities. The target area for this grant is the City of Springfield with a focus on the Metro Center, Indian Orchard, and Six Corners neighborhoods. Priority sites include former industrial properties, a former laundromat, and vacant properties.
- The Town of Ware has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Cleanup Grant. Grant funds will be used to clean up the former Ware Manufactured Gas Plant located on Monroe Street, which is contaminated with cyanide, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, petroleum, and heavy metals. Grant funds also will be used to conduct community outreach and engagement activities.
- Westmass Area Development Corporation, of Springfield, Mass., has been selected to receive $740,000 for a Brownfields Cleanup Grant. Grant funds will be used to clean up the 300 Series Warehouse Buildings and Mill Buildings 46 and 58, which are part of the 52-acre Ludlow Mills Complex at 100 State Street in the Town of Ludlow. The buildings are currently contaminated with PCBs, heavy metals, and inorganic contaminants. Grant funds also will be used to conduct community outreach and engagement activities.
Non-competitive Supplemental Funding Through the Existing Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Grant Program
- Berkshire Regional Planning Commission, of Pittsfield, Mass., has been selected to receive $2,350,000 in RLF supplemental funding. The commission has received a total of $5,250,000 from EPA in prior years for this program, and they have successfully made loans or subgrants leading to 12 cleanup projects that are either completed or in progress. Potential projects highlighted for use of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) funding include Greylock Mill in North Adams and Curtis Fine Paper in Adams. The BIL funding will extend the capacity of the program to provide funding for more cleanups in the most underserved areas in Berkshire County.
Information on the EPA’s Brownfields programs can be found on the EPA website.