News Releases from Region 08

City of Mandan, N.D. to receive $300,000 to advance property cleanup and redevelopment

EPA Brownfields grant will fund needed environmental assessments at priority sites

Mandan, N.D. --  Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing that the City of Mandan, North Dakota will receive a $300,000 Brownfields assessment grant to inventory sites and conduct environmental site assessments at properties identified as priorities for redevelopment. 

The City of Mandan is among 151 communities nationwide selected to receive 154 grant awards totaling $66.5 million in EPA Brownfields funding through the agency’s Multipurpose, Assessment, and Cleanup Grant programs. This funding will support underserved and economically disadvantaged communities across the country in assessing and cleaning up contaminated and abandoned industrial and commercial properties. Approximately 50 percent of selected recipients will be receiving EPA Brownfields Grant funding for the first time and more than 85 percent are located in or serving small communities. 

“The City of Mandan has identified several sites with redevelopment potential along the Main Street corridor that will benefit greatly from environmental assessments to evaluate existing and potential contamination,” said Mark A. Smith, EPA Region 8 director of the Land, Chemicals, and Redevelopment Division. “This EPA grant will help the City identify specific cleanup needs and advance economic redevelopment goals in the downtown area.” 

EPA has selected the City of Mandan for a Brownfields assessment grant, which will be used to inventory and prioritize sites and conduct up to 16 environmental site assessments at properties where potential contamination is an obstacle to redevelopment. Grant funds also will be used to develop cleanup and reuse plans and conduct community outreach activities, including a community engagement plan.  

The EPA grant funds will be used to focus on properties in the City’s downtown district, including the Lewis and Clark Building, former gas stations and dry cleaners, commercial buildings, and other parcels on and adjacent to Main Street. Potential contaminants of concern at these sites include petroleum products, chlorinated solvents, asbestos, mold and heavy metals, such as arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead and mercury.   

“Grant money being provided by the EPA will help Mandan identify properties and buildings community-wide that face hurdles to sale, lease and re-use because of prior uses or the potential presence of hazardous substances and petroleum,” said City Manager Jim Neubauer. “These are complexities often too challenging for current owners to overcome, so we are pleased to be able to provide assistance in addressing any issues and creating additional vibrancy.” 

The list of the fiscal year 2021 applicants selected for funding is available here: https://www.epa.govhttps://www.epa.gov/brownfields/applicants-selected-fy-2021-brownfields-multipurpose-assessment-and-cleanup-grants

EPA anticipates that it will award the grants once all legal and administrative requirements are satisfied by the selected recipients. 

Background  

Since its inception in 1995, EPA's Brownfields Program has provided nearly $1.76 billion in grants to assess and clean up contaminated properties and return them to productive reuse. This has led to significant benefits for communities across the country. For example, 

·         To date, communities participating in the Brownfields Program have been able to attract more than $34.4 billion in cleanup and redevelopment funding after receiving Brownfields funds. This has led to over 175,500 jobs in cleanup, construction, and redevelopment.  

·         Based on grant recipient reporting, recipients leveraged on average $20.13 for each EPA Brownfields dollar and 10.3 jobs per $100,000 of EPA Brownfield Grant funds expended on assessment, cleanup, and revolving loan fund cooperative agreements. 

·         In addition, an academic peer-reviewed study has found that residential properties near brownfield sites increased in value by 5% to 15.2% as a result of cleanup activities. 

·         Finally, analyzing data near 48 brownfields, EPA found an estimated $29 million to $97 million in additional tax revenue for local governments in a single year after cleanup—2 to 7 times more than the $12.4 million EPA contributed to the cleanup of those brownfield sites. 

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

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