Maine receives EPA’s largest brownfields cleanup investment

(WABI) - The United States EPA is ending more than $16 million to Maine to help clean up polluted brownfields sites.

The money comes from President Joe Biden’s Investing in America Agenda.

Bangor, Augusta, Caribou, East Millinocket, Eastport, Lincoln, Millinocket, Perry and Machias are among the communities receiving funding.

EPA officials called it the single largest investment in brownfields in history, saying it will contribute to economic redevelopment and job creation.

The EPA has provided the following information on all of the brownfields sites selected in Maine:

Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments, of Auburn, ME, has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Communitywide grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments and develop cleanup and revitalization plans, and support community outreach activities. The target areas for this grant are the cities of Lewiston and Auburn. Priority sites include vacant and underutilized lots in Lewistown’s downtown core and a former automobile repair shop in downtown Auburn.
The City of Augusta has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments and community outreach activities as well as prepare cleanup and revitalization plans. Priority sites include the 57,330-square-foot APGAR Building, which is a former cotton and textile manufacturing facility, and the former Carey’s Body Shop.
The City of Bangor has been selected to receive $897,850 for a Brownfields Cleanup Grant. Grant funds will be used to clean up Building #610 located on the Bangor International Airport (BIA) property at 287 Godfrey Boulevard. The site is currently contaminated with inorganic contaminants, heavy metals, mold, volatile organic compounds, semi-volatile organic compounds, PCBs, and per-and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Grant funds also will be used to conduct community engagement activities.
The City of Caribou has been selected to receive $900,000 for a Brownfields Cleanup Grant. Grant funds will be used to clean up the 3.2-acre Caribou Diesel Electric Power Plant and Outbuildings at 142 Lower Lyndon Street. The site is currently contaminated with waste oil and hazardous substances, including stored diesel, lube oil, waste oil, waste oil-contaminated water, sludge, antifreeze, degreaser/solvent, and water treatment chemicals. Grant funds also will be used to conduct community engagement activities.
The Town of East Millinocket has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments, prepare cleanup plans, and to conduct community engagement activities. The target area for this grant is downtown East Millinocket. Priority sites include a former paper mill and a former auto repair station.
Friends of The Boat School Marine Trades Development Corporation, of Eastport ME, has been selected to receive $675,000 for a Brownfields Cleanup Grant. Grant funds will be used to clean up the 8.4-acre Maine Marine Technology Center property at 16 Deep Cove Road in the City of Eastport. Groundwater at the property is currently contaminated with 1,2-Dichloroethane. PCBs, mercury, solvents, petroleum products, and inorganic materials have been found within buildings on the property. Grant funds also will be used to perform community outreach and engagement activities including public meetings and social media postings.
The Town of Lincoln has been selected to receive $750,000 for a Brownfields Cleanup Grant. Grant funds will be used to clean up the 58-acre Parcel 2–Lincoln Pulp & Tissue site at 50 Katahdin Avenue, which sits adjacent to the Penobscot River. The site is currently contaminated with heavy metals, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), inorganic contaminants, and volatile organic hydrocarbons. Grant funds also will be used to oversee cleanup activities and conduct public meetings.
The Town of Millinocket has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments, develop cleanup plans, and support community outreach activities. The target area for this grant is Millinocket’s Downtown and Central Street Corridor. Priority sites include a vacant dry cleaner facility, a former high school, and a former auto repair facility.
Our Katahdin, of Millinocket ME, has been selected to receive $1,500,000 for a Brownfields Cleanup Grant. Grant funds will be used to clean up the 15-acre Tank Farm/Railroad Corridor at 1 Katahdin Avenue, which is currently contaminated with inorganic contaminants, petroleum, and metals. Grant funds also will be used for community involvement and outreach materials.
The Passamaquoddy Tribe at Pleasant Point, of Perry, ME, has been selected to receive $1,300,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments, update a site inventory conduct public meetings, and prepare reuse and cleanup plans. The target area for this grant is approximately 128,411 acres of tribal lands throughout the State of Maine including both Trust land, Fee land, and the Pleasant Point and Indian Township Reservations, as well as non-Indian lands in the adjacent Washington County communities of Calais and Meddybemps. Priority sites include the Charlotte Smith Property, a vacant warehouse, gas service station and garage known as the Calais Site, the 555-acre Backscatter Radar Site, and the former Beatrice Rafferty School.
The City of Portland has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used for environmental site assessments, cleanup plans, and community engagement activities. The target area for this grant is the City of Portland, focusing on the Bayside/East Bayside Neighborhood. Priority sites include a two-block industrial tract that is currently being used as an unpaved trailer lot and a scrapyard, and a 7-acre commercial center.
The City of Saco has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments, prepare cleanup plans, and conduct community engagement activities. The target area for this grant is Downtown Saco, Saco’s Market, and the Lincoln Street Area. Priority sites include former automotive repair facilities and former gas stations.
Sunrise County Economic Council, of Machias, ME, has been selected to receive $500,000 for a Brownfields Assessment Grant. Community-wide grant funds will be used to conduct environmental site assessments, develop cleanup plans and support community outreach activities. The target areas for this grant are the coastal communities of Machias, Eastport, and Lubec. Priority sites include the old Machias town dump, a local airport, a vacant and abandoned pet food plant, an abandoned solvents manufacturing facility, and a waterfront railroad site.
The Town of Wiscasset has been selected to receive a $700,000 Brownfields Cleanup Grant. Grant funds will be used to clean up the 4.5-acre North Point Fill Area located at the northern tip of the Birch Point Peninsula, which is currently contaminated with inorganic contaminants and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Grant funds also will be used to develop outreach materials and public involvement activities.