Presentation_EPA Leading Environmentalism and Forwarding Sustainability (LEAFS) Award Copyrighted
May 7, 2018
City of Dubuque Presentation(s) # 4.
ITEM TITLE: Leading Environmentalism and Forwarding Sustainability
(LEAFS)Award
SUMMARY: Transportation Services Manager Candace Eudaley-
Loebach will present the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) Region 7 award for outstanding contributions
to environmentalism and sustainability at Superfund sites.
SUGGESTED DISPOSITION:
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
EPA LEAFS Award New Release Supporting Documentation
Dubuque CONTACT:
Tt-lE CiTY OF � Benjamin Washburn, (913) 551-7364,
D V � E All-America6ry Washburn ben(a�epa qov or
�„ ° 'j Ashley Murdie, (816) 604-9275,
IIII Murdie.ashlevnepa.qov
Master�iece on the Mississipqi wa�•ao�z
2013•2017
NEWS RELEASE
Apri119, 2018 — FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
EPA Region 7 Recognizes City of Dubuque
with Award for Environmental Practices
DUBUQUE, lowa - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 7 today
recognized the City of Dubuque and John Deere Dubuque Works for their outstanding
contributions to environmentalism and sustainability at Superfund sites.
Following a presentation at John Deere Dubuque Works this morning, EPA Region 7
Administrator Jim Gulliford presented a Leading Environmentalism and Forwarding
Sustainability (LEAFS) award to Dubuque Mayor Roy D. Buol at a ribbon-cutting
ceremony for the Jule Operations and Training Center, which is located on an EPA
Superfund site. Two City staff, Transportation Services Director Candace Eudaley-
Loebach and Project Manager Steve Sampson Brown, were among several individuals
involved in the project to also receive certificates of appreciation from EPA Region 7 for
their roles in the project.
"EPA is recognizing two organizations in Dubuque for leading innovative efforts that are
transforming Superfund sites into productive reuse showcases," Gulliford said. "Both the
City of Dubuque and the team at John Deere Dubuque Works have earned this
recognition through a steadfast commitment to their community. Cleaning up sites and
restoring them to productive use is at the core of the Supertund mission, and we greatly
value these efforts."
EPA Region 7 (lowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and nine Tribal Nations) established
the LEAFS award to recognize those who have supported the Supertund
Redevelopment Initiative through innovative thinking, sustainable practices, and
environmental stewardship.
The City of Dubuque, in partnership with the lowa Department of Transportation and the
lowa Department of Natural Resources, as well as the MidAmerican Energy Company,
earned the LEAFS award for its revitalization of the Peoples Natural Gas Superfund
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Site, transforming it into the Jule Operations and Training Center (JOTC). Actions taken
at the site include:
. Constructing the building with very limited excavation, while using the foundation
of the previous building.
. The grade was raised several feet to increase the distance between subsurface
contamination and the building.
. The floor of the entire building is one piece and includes a vapor barrier to
prevent vapor intrusion.
. New subsurface utility lines were specially constructed to prevent contact with
contaminants and minimize the necessity for repairs.
For more information on the City's actions to address contamination at the Jule
Operations and Training Center site, visit:
https://www.citvofdubuque.orq/DocumentCenter/View/36756
According to the EPA, Region 7 is a highly rural region with lots of available
greenspace. Many opportunities exist to revitalize these sites through creative thinking
and environmental awareness. Sites that are successfully reused can benefit
communities, developers, site owners, and local governments. These sites can also be
redeveloped in a way that enhances the remedial actions taken and supports
stewardship of the land. This award was established to recognize any and all of these
outstanding efforts.
Previous LEAFS award winners include various stakeholders at the Chemical
Commodities Inc. Site in Olathe, Kansas, in 2012; and Walmart and the Argentine
Neighborhood Development Association for their reuse of the Kansas City Structural
Steel Site in Kansas City, Kansas, in 2014.
# # #
Learn more about the EPA Region 7 LEAFS Award:
https://www.epa.qov/supertund-redevelopment-initiative/epa-reqion-7-leadinq-
environmentalism-and-forwardinq
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