Michigan Brings Home Federal Investment from the EPA to Revitalize Communities, Create Jobs and Advance Environmental Justice

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 22, 2024
Contact Information: MichiganInfrastructure@michigan.gov

Michigan Brings Home Federal Investment from the EPA to Revitalize Communities, Create Jobs and Advance Environmental Justice

Michigan receives $6.4 million in brownfield grants from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law

LANSING, Mich.– The Michigan Infrastructure Office today announced that eight projects have been awarded a total of $6,475,000 in grants from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Brownfields Multipurpose, Assessment, and Cleanup (MAC) Grant Programs and Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Grant Programs. Made possible by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), this funding will help communities expedite the assessment and cleanup of brownfield sites, helping to transform once-polluted, vacant, and abandoned properties into community assets.

Communities that have experienced disinvestment can lack the resources needed to initiate brownfield cleanup and redevelopment projects. Remediating brownfield sites attracts jobs, promotes economic revitalization and transforms communities into sustainable and environmentally just places for people to live and grow.

“These grants, made possible by the Biden Administration, will help transform brownfield sites into thriving, healthy spaces, creating good-paying jobs, and fostering economic growth,” said Zachary Kolodin, Michigan’s chief infrastructure officer and director of the Michigan Infrastructure Office. “Revitalizing brownfields preserves green space, creates jobs in environmental justice communities, and promotes density, enabling a brighter, more sustainable and more prosperous future for everyone who calls this state home.” 

The EPA’s Brownfields Program advances President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative which set a goal that 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain Federal investments flow to communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution. The Brownfields Program strives to meet this commitment and advance environmental justice and equity considerations in all aspects of its work.

“Helping address legacy pollution and putting properties back on the tax rolls is an important part of building a vibrant economy, particularly in Michigan’s distressed communities,” said EGLE Director Phil Roos. “Today’s support from the Biden-Harris administration’s U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will be critical to our work to support communities across Michigan put formerly contaminated properties back into productive use while protecting our natural resources and safeguarding public health. EGLE, under Governor Whitmer's leadership, stands ready to utilize every resource possible to make Michigan communities the best place to live, work, and play.” 

Michigan Grant Recipients

•  Tuscola County Economic Development Corporation: $600,000 for assessment 
• Calhoun County Land Bank Authority: $1,500,000 for coalition assessment
• Oakland County: $1,500,000 for coalition assessment 
• City of Detroit: $500,000 for community-wide assessment
•  Lenawee Chamber Foundation: $500,000 for community-wide assessment
• City of South Haven: $300,000 for community-wide assessment
•  Bay Mills Indian Community: $575,000 for cleanup activities
•  Macomb County Brownfield Redevelopment Authority: $1,000,000 in supplemental Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) funding 

To date, Michigan has brought home $10.8 billion in funding from the BIL to invest in improving our roads and bridges, high-speed internet access, water systems, public transit, clean energy and more to drive enhanced connectivity, improved transportation and resilient infrastructure. From Fiscal Year ‘19 to Fiscal Year ‘24, the state has provided over $151 million in brownfield grants and loans to 359 projects, resulting in the creation of 19,229 jobs and $7.3 billion in private investments.

To learn more about Brownfield Redevelopment in Michigan, please visit www.michigan.gov/egle/about/organization/remediation-and-redevelopment/brownfields.

For more information about how federal funding is being invested to improve Michigan’s infrastructure, please visit michigan.gov/whitmer/issues/michigan-infrastructure-office.

ABOUT THE MICHIGAN INFRASTRUCTURE OFFICE

The Michigan Infrastructure Office is responsible for organizing and executing Governor Whitmer’s vision for infrastructure, coordinating across state government, marshaling resources, and partnering with local officials, federal partners, and outside stakeholders to ensure resources sent to Michigan through BIL, also known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), are used efficiently and effectively.