FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 14, 2007

WASHINGTON, DC - Congressman John J. Duncan, Jr. (R-Tenn.) announced earlier today that the East Tennessee Development District has been awarded a Brownfield grant from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Brownfield grants are used to develop former industrial and commercial sites across the Country.  With the help of this program, communities can transform abandoned and contaminated waste sites into new development.  Past redevelopment approaches have turned landfills into golf courses, gas stations into housing, and rail corridors into recreational trails.

The East Tennessee Development District will receive a $200,000 grant to perform environmental assessments and plan the clean up of hazardous waste sites within the community.  

"The Brownfields program has helped to clean up and revitalize former industrial parks and landfill sites," said Duncan.  "This grant is a testament to the commitment that the East Tennessee Development District has to the economic growth and prosperity of our region."

Since 2002, the EPA Brownfields program has awarded 1,067 assessment grants totaling more than $262 million, 217 revolving loan fund grants totaling more than $201.7 million, and 336 cleanup grants totaling $61.3 million.