The site of a former foundry on Chestnut Street and multiple sites on South Broad Street could see cleaner days after Chattanooga received $3.5 million in EPA funding for brownfield cleanup.
Funding available through the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law was also awarded to Dunlap, Tennessee, and the South Central Tennessee Development District.
Brownfields refer to properties that are vacant or not being used because of contamination. Cleanups and remediation reduce threats to community health, safety and the environment, according to a news release.
“Brownfields can not only be cleaned up but can become community assets, and these federal grants will go a long way in making that happen in Tennessee,” Greg Young, a Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation deputy commissioner, said in the release.
The state conservation department assisted the grantees on their applications and will continue to help, according to the release.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced more than $300 million in grants raised by the Investing in America initiative. The funds are organized to help states, tribal nations, local communities and nonprofit organizations clean up polluted brownfield locations throughout the United States, according to a news release.
Chattanooga’s portion of the funding will go to its Revolving Loan Fund, which has facilitated nine cleanup projects. In revolving loan funds, proceeds from loan repayments flow back into the fund for future loans.
The South Central Tennessee Development District in Mount Pleasant received $1.5 million to assess brownfields in 13 counties, and Dunlap received $630,000 to clean up the former Victory Automotive property.
— Compiled by Alexis Dewey