Brownfields Toolbox

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State and Local Government

State and local government often have the responsibility of disseminating block grant funds. Sometimes this process is formalized and requires long lead time to be included as part of the block grant. In other cases, however, discretionary funds exist that may be used depending on state and local needs. Brownfields Job Development and Training programs interested in accessing state and local funds need to investigate how block grants are administered in their community. A good place to start is in the mayor's office in the departments of economic and/or community development, or human resources.


City Government refers to the city agency responsible for promoting community revitalization and economic development. Sometimes it is the office of economic development or the community development office. Cities can also access state and federal programs, such as funding for Empowerment Zones.


Empowerment Zones, Enterprise Communities and Renewal Communities (http://www.ezec.gov/) are often referred to as "EZs," "ECs," or "RCs." These designated geographical areas relate to a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) initiative, which "offers residents and businesses the opportunities and resources to overcome seemingly insurmountable problems." Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities may be located in rural or urban areas. The EZ/EC designation allows communities access to billions of dollars in the form of tax incentives targeted at promoting economic development and creating new jobs. Many states and city governments have created "economic redevelopment" zones that often overlap with EZ/EC/RC zones. Additionally, many brownfields are located within these same zones, which allow leveraging of local, state, and federal assistance.

Milwaukee Community Service Corps (http://www.milwaukeecommunityservicecorps.org/home.htm), which was awarded its second EPA Brownfields Job Development and Training grant in 2004, recruited students from the Milwaukee Renewal Community, a distressed, predominately African-American community with a 21% unemployment rate and where 50% of residents live in poverty.

State Environmental Agencies (http://www.epa.gov/epahome/state.htm) can provide expertise and training in brownfields site assessment, cleanup techniques, and environmental regulations. Most brownfields job training advisory boards include representatives of state environmental agencies. For example, Maryland Department of the Environment (http://www.mde.state.md.us/Programs/LandPrograms/ERRP_Brownfields/home/index.asp) serves on the advisory board for Civic Works, providing technical advice on the job training curriculum, as well as conducting training in erosion and sediment control. The St. Louis office of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (http://www.dnr.state.mo.us/alpd/hwp/hwpvcp.htm) serves on a brownfields job training advisory board that guided St. Louis Community College and St. Louis University in determining the types of training to include in their program. The North Carolina Department of Environmental and Natural Resources - Division of Waste Management (http://wastenot.enr.state.nc.us/)serves on the advisory board for the city of Winston-Salem and conducted job training on environmental regulations.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) (http://www.usace.army.mil/CEPA/FactSheets/Pages/Environment.aspx) is a partner with the EPA and over 20 other federal agencies that are committed to helping communities prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields. The Corps is the nation's largest public engineering agency. Their engineering capabilities help communities across the United States solve their brownfields challenges. These capabilities fall in the four broad areas of site assessment, site remediation, site redevelopment, and sustainable reuse. According to a Memorandum of Understanding between the EPA and the USACE, "USACE may provide technical assistance to communities and organizations that have received brownfields grants from the EPA."  The USACE Brownfields Assistance List (http://www.brownfieldstsc.org/) includes all the Corps' districts that provide brownfields assistance.

Representatives from the USACE are often asked to serve on brownfields job training advisory boards. For example, the advisory board for Civic Works includes a representative from the USACE Baltimore District who provided technical advice on the job training curriculum. Representatives from the Corps Baltimore District also conducted training in wetlands and wetland restoration for Civic Works. The USACE St. Louis District serves on the advisory board for St. Louis Community College's Brownfields Job Development and Training program.

Department of Labor Initiatives

Workforce Investment Boards (WIBs) (http://www.nawb.org/) were created in 1998 when workforce development was reformed under the Workforce Investment Act (http://www.doleta.gov/programs/factsht/wialaw.cfm). Workforce Investment Boards plan and oversee state and local workforce development and job training programs. Private employers must comprise a majority of each board. Representatives of local government, education agencies, organized labor, economic development, community-based organizations, and social service agencies may also serve on the board. "A key means by which WIBs create local workforce development systems is through one-stop career centers which combine multiple federal, state, and local program funds." The city of Lewiston, Maine, which was selected for an EPA Brownfields Job Development and Training grant in 2004, is working with the Central/Western Maine Workforce Investment Board Career Center (http://www.mainefocus.org/) to place graduates in environmental jobs.

One-Stop Career Centers (http://www.careeronestop.org/) are designed to provide a full range of integrated services to help businesses find qualified workers, and help job-seekers and workers obtain employment and training services to advance their careers. Established under the Workforce Investment Act, the new workforce development system is largely based on a one-stop service delivery structure offering access to a variety of employment and training services all under one roof. These local one-stop centers offer assessment of:

• skills;
• labor market information;
• career counseling;
• job-search and placement assistance; and
• information on training, education, and related support services such as daycare.

The One-Stop Career Center System is coordinated by the Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration (ETA) (http://www.doleta.gov/) and overseen by community-based Workforce Investment Boards.

There are three levels of service available to all jobseekers through One-Stop Career Centers. For intensive and training services, priority is given to recipients of public assistance and other low-income individuals.

• Core services include outreach, job search and placement assistance, and labor market information.
• Intensive services include more comprehensive assessments, development of individual employment plans, and counseling and career planning.
• Training services are available to those who have been unable to find employment through intensive services. Customers are linked to job opportunities in their communities, including both occupational skills training and basic skills training. Participants use an “individual training account” voucher to select an appropriate training program from a qualified training provider.

The city of Winston-Salem partnered with Northwest Piedmont Council of Governments' JobLink Centers to identify potential students, provide life skills training, place students in appropriate training programs, and assist with job placement. In North Carolina, the one-stop career centers are referred to as JobLink Career Centers. The JobLink Centers, which provide employment and training services in the community, are a service of the North Carolina Department of Commerce, the Division of Employment and Training. Several JobLink Centers conducted orientation sessions for prospective students. One of the JobLink Career Center locations is Goodwill Industries of Northwest North Carolina.

• Job Corps (http://jobcorps.doleta.gov/) is the nation's largest and most comprehensive residential education and job training program for at-risk youth, ages 16 through 24. Job Corps combines classroom, practical, and work-based learning experiences to prepare youth for stable, long-term, high-paying jobs.

• Cincinnati Job Corps (http://jobcorps.doleta.gov/centers/oh.cfm) provided apprenticeships to some of the students participating in the job training program.

Community Colleges, Colleges, and Universities are generally willing to provide in-kind support in one or more of the following ways:

• offering the use of their classroom facilities,
• providing technical assistance in designing the job training curriculum, and
• conducting portions of the training.

The city of Winston-Salem received in-kind support from Forsyth Technical Community College (http://www.forsythtech.edu/), which provided 16 hours of job readiness training and the use of their facilities for classroom training. JFY Networks received in-kind support from two universities in their community. Suffolk University (http://www.suffolk.edu/) designed curriculum for an environmental science course and a chemistry course and also provided lab space for a small fee. The New England Consortium/University of Massachusetts-Lowell (http://www.uml.edu/TNEC/) provided 40-hour HAZWOPER (Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response) training free of charge. A third example is the city of Cincinnati, which had its training efforts supported by the University of Cincinnati (http://www.uc.edu/) and Cincinnati State Technical and Community College (http://www.cincinnatistate.edu/).


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