Brownfields 2003 Grant Fact Sheet

The WorkPlace, Inc., Southwest Connecticut

EPA BROWNFIELDS PROGRAM

EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, communities, and other stakeholders in economic development to work together to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield site is real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. On January 11, 2002, President George W. Bush signed into law the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act. Under the Brownfields Law, EPA provides financial assistance to eligible applicants through four competitive grant programs: assessment grants, revolving loan fund grants, cleanup grants, and job training grants. The job training grants provide training for residents of communities affected by brownfields to prepare them for employment in the assessment and cleanup of brownfield sites. Additionally, funding support is provided to state and tribal response programs through a separate mechanism.

JOB TRAINING GRANT - $200,000 Award in 2003

EPA has selected The WorkPlace, Inc. for a brownfields job training grant. The WorkPlace, Inc. plans to train 54 students, achieve a placement rate of 83%, and track graduates for one year. The 256-hour training program will include hazardous material handling, lead abatement, and asbestos abatement. Students will be recruited from communities with higher unemployment and poverty rates. The WorkPlace, Inc. serves as the workforce investment board for Southwest Connecticut and will ensure placement of graduates in environmental jobs.

COMMUNITY DESCRIPTION

The WorkPlace, Inc. was selected to receive a job training grant. The training program will target eleven communities in Southwest Connecticut: Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Derby, Naugatuck, Newtown, Oxford, Seymour, Shelton, Thomaston, Waterbury, and Watertown. These communities lie within the 45-mile long Naugatuck Valley (population 292,783), which contains more than 20% of the state's brownfield sites. The brownfields are a legacy of the metal-working, rubber, chemical, and other related industries. The eleven communities to be served under this grant have poverty rates and unemployment above the state average. A quarter of the adult population has less than a high school education. All of the employers surveyed for this project indicated a need for entry-level environmental technicians. The grant will train local residents for much needed brownfields activities associated with the EPA-funded Brownfields Pilot in the valley.

CONTACTS

For further information, including specific grant contacts, additional grant information, brownfields news and events, and publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site.

EPA Region 1 Brownfields Team
617-918-1210
http://www.epa.gov/region01/brownfields/

Grant Recipient: The WorkPlace, Inc.
203-576-7030

Prior to receipt of these funds in fiscal year 2003, The WorkPlace, Inc. also received funding for job training grants.