

EPA sets grants to restore 'brownfields' at blighted sites


The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday announced more than $66 million in grants to 151 communities nationwide to assess and clean up contaminated or abandoned "brownfields'' — industrial and commercial properties that contain a hazardous substance, pollutant or contaminant. An estimated 450,000 brownfields, including abandoned industrial facilities, waste disposal sites and former gas stations, plague cities, towns and rural areas throughout the country.