A new round of grant money being awarded to Kokomo will go toward assessing possible polluted sites in the city and neighboring communities.
The City of Kokomo will receive $500,000 from the Environmental Protection Agency to study what are known as "brownfields." Those are sites where the presence of pollution or hazardous substances might be significant enough to prevent development or redevelopment.
This is the third batch of grant money the EPA has given for this purpose, and the second specifically for site assessment, bringing the total amount Kokomo has received to $1.9 million.
City development specialist David Tharp says brownfield sites are usually former industrial sites—either with old, unused structures or no structures at all.
He says the assessment process involves studying the site's history, and then conducting laboratory work on its soil.
"It's not so much that it's a very equipment heavy process, but it a very technical and detailed process that does take a bit of time and resources," Tharp says. "Thankfully, this grant and the other grant go through and help us redevelop a lot of these sites."
Kokomo Mayor Greg Goodnight says the previous grant award for assessment was used to check on 35 sites in the area.