Oklahoma has received a $2 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency, one of 265 Brownfield grants out of a total of $254.5 million to help clean up polluted areas of the country.
The Oklahoma grant was made to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission where spokesman Matt Skinner called it a “very large grant” that will have to be spent within a 5-year period.
The grant to the Corporation Commission was the only EPA grant in the state included in the most recent announcement.
Brownfield projects can range from cleaning up buildings with asbestos or lead contamination, to assessing and cleaning up abandoned properties that once managed dangerous chemicals. Once cleaned up, former brownfield properties can be redeveloped into productive uses such as grocery stores, affordable housing, health centers, museums, parks, and solar farms.
The money granted to Oklahoma will be used to carry out what are called Phase 1 and Phase 2 assessments, according to Skinner.
“This applies to oil and gas sites and petroleum storage sites such as old gas stations,” he explained. “Eventually, those properties that are now of questionable value can be turned into something that economically viable.”
The Corporation Commission, in order to receive the $2 million Brownfield grant held a series of meetings with tribes and communities statewide.
“We did a grass roots effort to reach out and now will notify them to help formulate specific sites.”
Many of the sites are in low income areas and “very often minority areas” added Skinner who said calls will probably be made this week.
The Phase 1 and Phase 2 operations will explore what will be necessary to clean up the affected areas and create plans for the restoration. Once restoration plans are drawn up, applications will be made to the EPA for more financial assistance.
“Grants can come after Phase 1 and Phase 2 and can be very expensive,” said Skinner. “Phase 2 will actually delineate the cost for the cleanup.”
The Brownfield grants announced in recent days, according to the EPA announcement are supported by the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which provides a total of $1.5 billion to advance environmental justice, spur economic revitalization, and create jobs by cleaning up contaminated, polluted, or hazardous brownfield properties.
The Brownfields Program advances President Biden’s Justice40 InitiativeEXITEXIT EPA WEBSITE, which aims to deliver at least 40 percent of the benefits of certain government programs to disadvantaged communities. Approximately 86 percent of the communities selected to receive funding as part of today’s announcement have proposed projects in historically underserved areas.
“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. Thanks to President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we are significantly ramping up our investments in communities, with the bulk of our funding going to places that have been overburdened and underserved for far too long.”