Contact: Meshach A. Padilla, 206-553-2762, padilla.meshach@epa.gov

Seattle (May 12, 2022) – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is announcing a $500,000 investment in the cleanup and revitalization of two areas in Unalaska.  

“With today’s announcement, we’re turning blight into might for communities across America,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “EPA’s Brownfields Program breathes new life into communities by helping to turn contaminated and potentially dangerous sites into productive economic contributors.”

The following communities received grants awards to help turn Brownfield sites across Alaska into a hub of economic growth and job creation:

• $500,000 to the City of Unalaska for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Funding will be used to complete environmental site assessments for the Strawberry Hill and Pyramid Valley areas. Potential sites include Tony’s Service Center and the Strawberry Hill Landfill, both formerly used as defense sites, and the Iliuliuk Lake site. Grant funds also will be used to prepare a public engagement plan, organize and conduct meetings, and create a project webpage.

The Brownfields Program advances President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, ensuring that at least 40% of benefits from federal investments in climate and clean energy flow to disadvantaged communities. Approximately 86% of the communities selected to receive funding have proposed projects in historically underserved areas.

Communities will begin to address the economic, social, and environmental challenges caused by brownfields by stimulating economic opportunity and environmental revitalization in overburdened communities. Projects can range from cleaning up buildings with asbestos or lead contamination to assessing and cleaning up abandoned properties that once managed dangerous chemicals.

Find more information on the full list of the 2022 Brownfield Grant applicants selected for funding.

Background

A Brownfield is a property for which the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. Redevelopment includes everything from grocery stores and affordable housing to health centers, museums, greenways, and solar farms.   

The next National Brownfields Training Conference will be held on August 16-19, 2022 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Offered every two years, this conference is the largest gathering of stakeholders focused on cleaning up and reusing former commercial and industrial properties. EPA co-sponsors this event with the International City/County Management Association (ICMA). Conference registration is open at www.brownfields2022.org.

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

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

###