Hennepin County Environmental Response Fund Notification

Notifications will be sent when grant applications are being accepted for each semi-annual grant round and to keep you informed of news and updates related to the program.

To sign up, visit the Hennepin County e-notices sign up page, enter your e-mail address, and then select the Environmental Response Fund under the Environment, Property and Transportation section.

Grant applications are being accepted

Hennepin County Environmental Services is accepting applications for the Spring 2010 Environmental Response Fund (ERF) grant round. Applications are due by May 3 at 4:30 p.m. Applications should be submitted at the Environmental Services Building (417 N. 5th St., Minneapolis).

To apply, download and complete the ERF Grant Application. See the ERF Grant Application Instructions for a description of the criteria that are considered when prioritizing projects and the relative weight that is assigned to each criterion.

If you are seriously considering applying for an ERF grant, please contact David Jaeger at 612-348-5714 to discuss your project, its appropriateness for this funding source, and how to best complete your application.

Funding available

Approximately $1 - 2 million is distributed every grant round. Individual funding commitments vary depending on the project.

To date, Hennepin County has awarded 233 ERF grants in seventeen funding rounds totaling more than $32 million.

Project selection

ERF grants are awarded on a competitive basis and priority is given to the following types of projects:

• Contaminated or potentially contaminated sites where the preferred end use is publicly owned property, such as park space, schools and municipal facilities.
• Affordable and moderate market-rate housing projects where contamination issues preclude redevelopment.
• Infill brownfield properties or orphan sites that are generally not attractive to large redevelopments but disrupt the fabric of community life and contribute to blight.
• Projects that incorporate sustainable activities and features in the project design, construction and operation.

Eligible applicants

Eligible applicants for the ERF include municipalities, economic development agencies, housing and redevelopment authorities, non-profit organizations, public companies, and private individuals and companies. ERF grants are not available to non-local government responsible parties.

ERF grants are available for the investigation or cleanup of non-petroleum contamination or petroleum-related contamination that is not eligible for reimbursement by the Minnesota Petrofund.

Brownfield Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund

Hennepin County Environmental Services also has an EPA-funded Brownfield Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund program available to assist with the investigation and clean up of contaminated sites. There is presently more than $1 million in loan funds available. A grant and loan package can be a favorable way to tackle larger projects.