On November 1, Gov. Tom Wolf announced the approval of new funding through the Industrial Sites Reuse Program (ISRP) for Pittston to assess a former industrial site in Luzerne County.
“Communities across the Commonwealth continue to invest in neighborhoods that will promote a sense of community while preserving public health and safety,” said Gov. Wolf. “The county is making significant strides to ensure safety for the residents of the City of Pittston both now and in the future.”
The property located on Benedict Street in the City of Pittston has been an industrial site since the early 1900s. Most recently, it was a powder-coating operation and warehouse.
The property was acquired as part of the Luzerne County Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Program in 2017. The program acquired properties damaged by flooding in 2011.
The ISRP grant will provide $15,000 for preparation of the work plan and project guidance documents, project management, site survey, geophysical survey, sensitive receptor survey, subsurface investigation, vapor intrusion evaluation, laboratory analysis and report preparation.
Once the site is assessed, the city intends to maintain the property as open space and as a possible location for recreational fields. The total project cost is $20,000.
“Governor Wolf, Secretary Davin [DCED], and Secretary McDonnell [DEP] have all recognized the importance of remediating old industrial sites for a better purpose,” said Sen. John Yudichak (D-Luzerne), Minority Chair of the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee.. “With the funding from the Industrial Sites Reuse Program, the city of Pittston will be able to do the work necessary to bring this property back into use for residents to enjoy.”
“This project is a win-win for everyone,” said Pittston City Manager, Joseph Moskovitz. “The property owner was able to relocate out of the floodplain, the city will address an environmental concern, and city residents will have open space available for recreational endeavors.”
The ISRP provides loans and grants for environmental assessments and remediation carried out by eligible applicants who did not cause or contribute to the contamination. The program is designed to foster the cleanup of environmental contamination at industrial sites, thereby bringing blighted land into productive reuse.
“Renovating this site will require important environmental cleanup efforts to ensure that the space is safe,” said Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Patrick McDonnell. “This funding will allow the city to properly clean up the site and make it a natural open space that the community may be able to enjoy for years to come.”
For more information about the program, visit DCED’s Industrial Sites Reuse Program webpage.
For more information on brownfields redevelopment, visit DEP’s Brownfield Redevelopment webpage.
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[Posted: November 1, 2019] www.PaEnvironmentDigest.com
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