County redeveloping brownfield

BALDWIN - Federal grants totaling $400,000 are helping Lake County preserve its No. 1 asset - its natural resources.

“All we have here is recreation,” said Tony Gagliardo, a member of the Brownfield Redevelopment Authority Board. “There are no big businesses and we have to deal with what we have. That's natural resources.”

The county was awarded two $200,000 assessment grants under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Brownfield Program. Brownfields are properties not in use because of contamination or suspected contamination. Funds will help Lake County revitalize its economic base by getting properties back on the tax rolls, reduce public exposure to contaminants and protect its rivers and trout streams.

“I was quite pleased we got it,” Gagliardo said. “Some commission members didn't think it would happen. It's a poor county and we haven't had much luck before.”

More than 700 applications from across the country were reviewed for the competitive awards.

“I think they clearly demonstrated a need to identify and assess the environmental qualities of the county,” said Flo McCormack, director of the grant services program for the Michigan Association of Counties Services Corp. McCormack helped the county prepare the grant application.

“They got everything they wanted,” she said.

Lake County brownfields include hundreds of small unregulated illegal dumps, 10 leaking underground storage tanks, several dozen oil and gas-producing wells and 29 active and 52 closed underground storage tanks as well as several contamination sites from commercial and industrial operations. Between 30 and 50 of the sites throughout the county will be assessed.

“How many depends on how serious they get,” Gagliardo said. “Some will cost more than others and we'll use the funds accordingly.”

Gagliardo attended an EPA-sponsored conference in November in Denver to learn how to administer and track the funds, and communicate with the EPA. A Lansing-based consulting firm was hired earlier this month to conduct the studies.

Lake County sites will be inventoried in accordance with national standards. The Phase I and Phase II assessments will be conducted over a two-year period.

Phase I analysis includes a drive-by inspection of a property, identifying its location by GPS, its history and an evaluation of whether environmental problems require further study, according to Deborah Orr, EPA Brownfield coordinator for Region 5, a six-state district. Phase II involves going to a site and taking samples.

“Phase I and Phase II are required for most property transfers these days,” Orr said. “A lot of communities find themselves responsible for sites not being used, abandoned or underutilized.”

The EPA in 2005 awarded more than $75 million in Brownfield Redevelopment grants to communities across the nation.

“Aside from state programs, this is another source of funds communities can use,” she said. “Michigan has a well-endowed program, but every state is struggling with funding right now. Michigan is no exception.”

EPA Brownfield programs include community outreach activities. In Lake County, the newly hired consulting firm will conduct public informational meetings. Once inventory and assessments are complete, the county qualifies to apply for cleanup grants.

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