$4 million federal grant for Arkansas brownfield sites prioritizes environmental, economic rehab

Booker Arts Magnet School, photographed on May 29, 2024, was chosen as a brownfield redevelopment project, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The school closed in 2022 and now sits empty and overgrown with vegetation. (Mary Hennigan/Arkansas Advocate)

A string of dilapidated commercial and residential buildings in Earle, a former auto repair site in West Memphis and the Booker Arts Magnet School in east Little Rock are three examples of Arkansas brownfield sites where rehabilitation can soon begin using $4 million in federal funds from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Brownfield sites — properties where commercial, industrial or agricultural use has contaminated the land and left it underused or abandoned — are scattered across Arkansas and pose a threat to the surrounding environment and economic development.

The Booker Arts Magnet School, located along Interstate 30 in Little Rock, closed in February 2022 due to low enrollment. Today, it sits empty and overgrown with vegetation. A painted map of the United States outside the school’s entrance lacks children jumping from Texas to New Mexico; the nearby track has no visitors.

The $4 million grant announced last week will help fund the redevelopment of the school and other properties, a move expected to have a positive environmental impact, improve the health of people who live nearby and encourage economic growth.

“Far too many communities across America have suffered the harmful economic and health consequences of living near polluted brownfield sites,” President Joe Biden said in a press release. “I’ve long believed that people who’ve borne the burden of pollution should be the first to see the benefits of new investment.”

Most of Arkansas’ grant, $3 million, will be disbursed between the state Department of Energy and Environment and the Southwest Arkansas Planning and Development District , a nonprofit based in Magnolia that aids with project planning for environmental initiatives, among other things.

“The Department of Energy and Environment, Division of Environmental Quality recognizes the positive impact this funding could have on the people of Arkansas, especially in the West Memphis, Earle, and east Little Rock communities,” spokesperson Carol Booth said in a statement. “Leaders in these communities have worked with E&E to identify five sites that present opportunities to promote economic revitalization, strengthen communities, and provide a healthy environment.”

The Southwest Arkansas Planning and Development District will tackle a 2.7-acre cleanup at the former Warner Brown Hospital in El Dorado, which has been vacant since 2015 and is contaminated with “heavy metals and inorganic contaminants,” according to the EPA.

Together, the state environmental agency and the nonprofit “have impressive records of getting the most out of Brownfields funding by effectively investing in assessment and cleanup efforts to benefit both urban and rural areas,” said Earthea Nance, a regional administrator with EPA.

The remaining $1 million will fund existing brownfield programs to expedite work in Arkansas and “help communities continue to address the economic, social, and environmental challenges” caused by the sites, according to the EPA.

The funds are available through the Biden administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

As of April 19, the state’s Department of Energy and Environment tracked 21 active brownfield sites, which indicates progress is being made through assessments or cleanups.

An interview request with the coordinator for the Arkansas Brownfield Program was denied.

The Arkansas Advocate was referred back to the state department’s statement when inquiring about the overall impact and importance of rehabilitating brownfield sites.

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