The Environmental Protection Agency has awarded nearly $1 million in grants to the Libby School District, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and the city of Missoula to assist with environmental assessments and cleanup of contaminated sites known as brownfields.

The sites include a former elementary school in Libby, abandoned sawmills on the Flathead Reservation and multiple industrial sites in Missoula, all of which are slated for redevelopment.

According to news releases from the EPA, the three Montana jurisdictions are among 151 nationwide to receive brownfield cleanup grants this year totaling $66.5 million.

"This funding will support underserved and economically disadvantaged communities across the country in assessing and cleaning up contaminated and abandoned industrial and commercial properties," the agency said. "Approximately 50% of selected recipients will be receiving EPA brownfields grant funding for the first time, and more than 85% are located in or serving small communities."

IN LIBBY, the school district will use its $388,000 grant to remove asbestos, lead-based paint and mercury from the former Asa Wood Elementary School, which operated from 1953 until 2011, when it was closed due to falling enrollment and budget challenges.

The project will aid in the redevelopment of the building as a 45-unit assisted-living facility for senior citizens. The EPA said grant funds "also will be used to conduct community outreach and site reuse visioning activities."

"This is a big deal, and it's a true win-win for the school district, the city and the county," Lincoln County Commissioner Mark Peck said in a statement. "It will provide opportunities for investment and economic development."

ON THE Flathead Reservation, the CSKT will use its $300,000 grant "to focus on assessment and reuse planning of the largest abandoned sawmills on the reservation and former fueling and auto repair businesses in the towns of Hot Springs and Ravalli."

The large mills include the Polson Mill, the Pablo Mill and the former Flathead Post & Pole site, all of which are near existing housing and infrastructure in the two largest towns on the reservation. The EPA said the tribes are seeking to redevelop brownfields to "reduce blight in low-income communities with tourism potential."

Other project sites include properties in Hot Springs and the former Ravalli Cash Store. The EPA said surface soil at the sites is contaminated with a range of hazardous compounds, including fuels, solvents, chemicals used to treat wood, dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls.

The EPA said the assessment and cleanup of the Polson Mill property "provides an opportunity to turn an unused property into a safe park connected to a residential neighborhood." The Pablo Mill, meanwhile, is slated for redevelopment as a business park. Grant funds also will be used for community outreach activities regarding the projects.

"Not only will it help us as tribes, it will help all residents who call the reservation home by beginning the process of cleaning up these sites," Rich Janssen, head of the CSKT's Natural Resources Department, said in a statement.

MISSOULA WILL use its $300,000 grant in its effort to transform the Northside and Westside industrial areas, which are separated by a large rail yard that is also a state Superfund site. The city is seeking to consolidate and modernize its public facilities, develop more affordable housing and expand parks and trails in the target areas.

The Northside area includes abandoned mills, small closed landfills, idled gravel mining operations and vehicle storage yards next to a low-income residential neighborhood. The Westside comprises a patchwork of motels, light-industrial public facilities, small residences, and the county jail. The target area also includes a gravel operation across the river from the Westside.

"With land for housing at such a premium, Missoula can't afford to ignore properties that can be cleaned up and reused," Missoula Mayor John Engen said in a statement.

Reporter Chad Sokol can be reached at 758-4439 or csokol@dailyinterlake.com