News from New York State Department of Environmental Conservation

For more information contact: Lori O'Connell, 518-402-8000

DEC Announces Brownfield Grant For Putnam County

$240,000 Awarded for Investigation of Contaminated Site in Village of Cold Spring

ALBANY, NY (08/21/2007; 1326)(readMedia)-- The Village of Cold Spring received a $240,000 Clean Water/Clean Air Bond Act grant for the investigation of environmental contamination at the Cold Spring Former MGP Site in Putnam County, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Pete Grannis announced today. The Village of Cold Spring owns the property and plans making the property available for recreational development.

“Through the Environmental Restoration Program (ERP), municipalities across the state are working with DEC to investigate and address contamination, with the goal of redeveloping and restoring their communities,” Commissioner Grannis said. “These grants demonstrate New York State’s commitment to economic development, environmental restoration, and provide positive benefits to our natural resources, public health, and local economies.”

The Village of Cold Spring will investigate the property located at 5 New Street, Cold Spring, NY, situated on a 0.2 acre parcel with frontage on New Street. The site is currently vacant and consists of a parking lot and grassed area. Historical operations of a coal carbonization gas plant at the site may have contributed to its suspected contamination.

The investigation will include conducting an inspection of the property and the remaining subsurface structures, installing groundwater sampling wells, and performing environmental sampling. Once the investigation is complete, a determination will be made on the remediation activities necessary to make the site safe for reuse.

The Village of Cold Spring is eligible for state assistance through ERP since it is not responsible for having caused the contamination. The $ 240,000 grant provides for 90 percent of the eligible costs of the on-site investigation, and 100 percent of the eligible costs for any offsite investigation. The Village of Cold Spring will fund the balance of the costs.

The Clean Water/Clean Air Bond Act authorizes $1.75 billion for important environmental programs. The Bond Act included $200 million for ERP grants to municipalities for costs associated with the investigation and cleanup of brownfields. To date, more than $155.8 million in Bond Act funding has been committed for 241 investigation and cleanup projects at brownfield sites throughout New York State. This funding includes 199 investigation projects totaling more than $76.4 million and 42 remediation projects totaling more than $79.4 million.

Other applications are under review by DEC and additional grants are anticipated in the near future. Brownfields are abandoned or underused properties where real or perceived environmental contamination hinders the potential for redevelopment