GULFPORT — The Environmental Protection Agency’s brownfields program empowers states, communities, and other stakeholders to work together to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield site is real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or re-use of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant.

The EPA has awarded the city of Gulfport a $400,000 brownfield assessment grant to help identify pollutants on publicly and privately-owned properties, and to develop cleanup and/or re-use plans if contamination is found. Community-wide hazardous substances and petroleum grant funds will be used to conduct 30 Phase I and seven Phase II environmental site assessments, and prepare cleanup plans for four sites. Grant funds also will be used to inventory sites, support community outreach activities, and develop a public health monitoring plan.

While the city’s grant focus is on the 49th Street Corridor, funding is available for all eligible properties within the city limits. Gulfport has scheduled a public information session from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. tonight (Feb. 24) at the 49th Street Neighborhood Center, 1617 49th St. S. For questions or information, call Fred Metcalf, Gulfport director of community development, at (727) 893-1095 or fmetcalf@mygulfport.us, or go to mygulfport.us.

#Gulfport #Brownfields