Grant will help county begin process of rehabilitating contaminated sites
Georgetown County has been awarded $500,000 in federal funds to begin a cleanup effort that would transform properties marred by environmental issues into usable community spaces.
The funds come in the form of a Brownfields Assessment grant from the Environmental Protection Agency. These grants can be used by communities for the purpose of inventorying and assessing brownfield sites, as well as conducting planning activities, developing site-specific cleanup plans and engaging community members in the process. The county received the maximum award amount and plans to begin seeking public input this autumn on sites that should be considered for rehabilitation.
Sites that could qualify include those contaminated with asbestos, old fuel tanks or other pollutants and hazardous substances. Those could include abandoned schools, factories and a range of other sites.
“The idea is to have community participation in deciding where we might want to focus some cleanup efforts and get input on places people are aware of that could be repurposed and refurbished for the overall benefit and wellbeing of the community,” said Maureen Mulligan, an environmentalist and training coordinator in the county’s Environmental Services Division.
Plans are to host community information and input meetings throughout the county, so residents in all reaches of Georgetown County can be involved. This inclusive approach will help ensure the voices of those who have lived and worked around neglected sites are heard.
The contractor for the project, Terracon, has already been selected and Mulligan is eager to get started.
“The cool thing about the assessment grant is it’s the first step toward potentially getting multiple millions in federal dollars for cleanups and improvements,” Mulligan said. “They especially are wanting to focus on historically ignored communities. And it really encourages community buy-in, so it’s not just us coming and telling people what we want to do; it’s finding out what the interests and priorities are for the community.”
Mulligan said she hopes to have a kickoff meeting with Terracon and the EPA set up within the next month so she can begin the process of scheduling public information meetings.