TDEC Announces $718,757 in Grants for Vacant Land Redevelopment

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) on Tuesday announced 36 Brownfield Redevelopment Area Grants (BRAG), totaling $718,757, for remediation projects across the state.

BRAG grants come from the Rural Brownfield Redevelopment Investment Act, which protects the environment and creates economic opportunity, particularly in rural areas. The legislation provides local governments and development boards with the resources needed to investigate, clean up and redevelop derelict properties.

A brownfield is a site that is vacant or underutilized due to contamination. Remediation minimizes threats to public health, safety, and the environment. Brownfield sites vary in size, location, age, and previous use.

BRAG grants are awarded in three categories: identification, investigation, and remediation. The announced grants are for the identification category, which allows applicants to apply for up to $20,000 to conduct brownfield inventories. Grants in the other categories will be announced at a later date.

Led by Governor Bill Lee and the Tennessee General Assembly, the law provides direct funding to accelerate the cleanup and redevelopment of vacant lots and help local governments transform neglected properties into community assets.

Brownfield redevelopment creates jobs, increases property values, increases tax revenues, and expands the tax base. Brownfield properties can include sites such as old industrial facilities, former coal yards/waste yards, abandoned gas stations, and closed landfills.

“These grants address important issues with neglected properties across Tennessee,” Lee said. “The process of cleaning up a contaminated property and turning it into an asset is an important step in environmental stewardship. We applaud the communities that went through the application process.”

“These Brownfield Redevelopment Grants will turn liabilities into assets, allowing our local communities to bring economic growth to previously underutilized and neglected areas,” said Lt. Governor Randy McNally. “I appreciate the work of Governor Lee, Commissioner Salyers and all members of the General Assembly to make this possible.”

“Brownfield Redevelopment Grants are very useful in helping communities transform existing commercial properties with perceived or real environmental problems into usable, clean redevelopments,” said House Speaker Cameron Sexton. “Helping local entities with these efforts benefits all Tennesseans.”

“The Brownfield Redevelopment Area Grants are an important mechanism to enable communities to repurpose contaminated properties,” said TDEC Commissioner David Salyers. “We are grateful to Governor Lee and the General Assembly for their commitment to this important initiative and look forward to the improvements that will result from this process.”

In this first year of the BRAG program, TDEC received overwhelming interest in the grants. Many high-value and critical projects are being addressed with these funds.

The grants announced today are:

• South Central TN Development District: Maury – $20,000
• County Williamson: Williamson – $20,000
• Greater Nashville Regional Council: Cheatham – $20,000
• Greater Nashville Regional Council: Dickson – $20,000
• Greater Nashville Regional Council: Davidson – $20,000
• Greater Nashville Regional Council: Robertson – $20,000
• Greater Nashville Regional Council: Rutherford – $20,000
• Greater Nashville Regional Council: Sumner – $20,000
• Greater Nashville Regional Council: Wilson – $20,000