EPA Awards $9.1m for brownfield cleanup projects in Colorado communities

DENVER — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced more than $9.1 million in Brownfields Assessment and Cleanup grants for projects across Colorado aimed at evaluating and remediating contaminated properties for future redevelopment.

The funding will support site assessments, environmental cleanup efforts and redevelopment planning in communities including Sheridan, Lamar, Trinidad, Alamosa, Montrose and Leadville.

“Addressing environmental contamination and reusing brownfield properties revitalizes neighborhoods, drives local job creation and creates new economic opportunities,” said Thomas Croci, acting assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Land and Emergency Management.

EPA Regional Administrator Cyrus Western said the grants will help communities clean up contaminated properties while supporting future economic development.

Colorado recipients include:

• The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, which received a $2 million assessment grant to conduct brownfield inventories, planning, environmental assessments and community outreach statewide.
• The City of Sheridan, which received a $500,000 assessment grant to evaluate asbestos, benzene and tetrachloroethene contamination at three sites.
• The City of Lamar, which received a $500,000 assessment grant to assess asbestos, lead-based paint and petroleum residue contamination at three sites.
• The City of Trinidad, which received a $500,000 assessment grant to assess asbestos, lead-based paint and petroleum fuel contamination at five sites.
• La Puente Home Inc. in Alamosa, which received a $1.8 million cleanup grant to remove arsenic and lead contamination from Railroad Plaza, a vacant property planned for commercial and public gathering space redevelopment.
• The City of Montrose, which received a $3.3 million cleanup grant for the former Bullock Plant site, where contamination includes toxic metals, volatile organic compounds and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The city plans to redevelop the property as a mixed-use site that includes a climbing gym and recreation facilities.
• The City of Leadville received a $492,000 cleanup grant to remove asbestos and asbestos-containing materials from a former middle school building slated for reuse as a community center.

EPA’s Brownfields Program, established in 1995, has provided more than $3 billion in funding for assessing and cleaning contaminated properties nationwide. According to the agency, brownfield investments have leveraged more than $45 billion in cleanup and redevelopment funding and supported more than 228,900 jobs.

The grants will be awarded after recipients complete the required legal and administrative steps.