Walker County Town Hall addresses Brownfields

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn (WDEF) — At a town hall tonight, Walker County officials will speak on a new program that will address the topic of brownfields.

A $500,000 grant gifted to Walker County by the Environmental Protection Agency will allow up to 30 brownfield sites to be properly identified and cleaned.

The town hall tonight will teach residents what a brownfield is and how they can join the cleanup efforts.

Brownfields are classified as plots of land that are contaminated by some natural or unnatural cause. They are considered unfit to build on, but thanks to this new program development is now a possibility.

The first step is community outreach, however, says Stephanie Watkins, the Economic Development Director of Walker County. “We definitely want the community involved and engaged,” she said. “We’re looking to those that want to be a part of the program and maybe have a site they want to have assessed. They would do that, come and hear more about it and then sign up.”

Residents, property owners and business owners are encouraged to attend tonight’s town hall meeting. They can learn valuable information that will shape the future.

Property and business owners can learn how to apply to have their land assessed and potentially classified as a brownfield. And even if you don’t own land or a business, you can still help by joining the Walker County officials in their cleanup and assessment efforts.

The meeting takes place tonight at 6:30 p.m. at the Walker County Civic Center.