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The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Division of Land Restoration is pleased to announce that the agency has been awarded a $200,000 Brownfields Petroleum Assessment Grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection (EPA) agency.
The funds will be used for site assessments of properties that have potentially been contaminated with petroleum-based pollutants. The DEP is conducting these site assessments across the state but the primary focus is on eight areas in Nicholas, Fayette and Raleigh counties. The assessments will likely begin in the fall of 2015 and are expected to take approximately three years.
“This grant will not only enable the DEP to assess brownfield properties for cleanup and redevelopment, but on a wider scale will help local communities capitalize on economic development opportunities,” said DEP Cabinet Secretary Randy Huffman.
The agency coordinates with the West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Centers at West Virginia University and Marshall University on brownfields projects and redevelopment efforts. These centers also assisted in developing the grant proposals for the DEP and for other West Virginia communities.
The DEP award is one of 264 grants, totaling $67 million, awarded by the EPA today. Other West Virginia groups awarded brownfields funding include the Wayne County Economic Development Authority, the city of Morgantown, the Tucker County city of Thomas and the Wyoming County Economic Development authority.
For more information about these grants, go to the EPA’s Brownfields and Land Revitalization page at http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/.