UB's Center for Integrated Waste Management has teamed up with local organizations in an attempt to simultaneously address two community issues - unemployment and the environment.
The Brownfields and Environmental Restorative Training program (BERT), organized by the waste management center and funded by a $200,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency and private contributions, trains disadvantaged Western New Yorkers in environmental redevelopment procedures. The program helps fill the demand for local environmental technicians, particularly with respect to cleaning-up hazardous "brownfields" sites, while combating unemployment and underemployment in the region.
The Center for Integrated Waste Management is preparing to launch its second and third tuition-free environmental training sessions this March in Niagara County and the Buffalo area. The first BERT program was held in Buffalo last summer.
BERT allows "entry-level workers to receive valuable training in both proactive and remedial environmental operations," said Gayle Nowak, admissions advisor at the Educational Opportunity Center.
The EPA defines brownfields as "abandoned, idled, or under-used industrial and commercial facilities where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination."
The primary focus of the BERT program, according to Louis Zicari, associate director of the Center for Waste Management, is to "make residents of brownfields-impacted communities a part of the solution," by offering a basic environmental job training program directed toward women, minorities, the unemployed and the underemployed.
There are an estimated 3,000 brownfield sites in Western New York that stand as reminders of Buffalo's industrial history. The Buffalo area was once one of the most highly industrialized regions in the country, but because environmental awareness was limited at that time, many industrial facilities were contaminated before the dangers were exposed.
After the passage of environmental laws in the 1970s, many companies involved in steel and chemical production left the area, finding it cheaper to establish new operations in other parts of the country than to clean and redevelop existing outdated facilities.
Nowak described BERT as "a full time, fast track program that involves nine weeks of intense training." Trainees must attend classes Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Graduates complete over 220 hours of training, which includes both in-class and hands-on field study. The broad curriculum includes everything from environmental laws and regulations to clean-up methods and analytical technologies.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are involved in forming the curriculum and providing volunteers to train students at their facilities or at hazardous waste sites.
Private groups, such as the AFL-CIO Local 210 (a craft construction labor union), Parson's Engineering Science, SJB Services, Pan-American Environmental Inc. and Malcolm Pirnie also provide trainers and or facilities for hands-on field training sessions.
After graduating, the EOC and other local organizations will help students find job placement in environmental firms and related careers.
"Employers are alerted about the training sessions and are anxious to speak with graduates," said Nowak.
Last year's graduates landed jobs in environmental firms including Hazard Evaluations Inc. and Fibertech Environmental, as well as in the construction field. Zicari said environmental training is necessary in Western New York in construction and demolition operations, and the BERT program gives graduates a step-up on other applicants in this field.
Some of the private groups that contributed time and materials to the project last year also hired a number of graduates, including the AFL-CIO Local 210 and SJB Services.
The UB Toxicology Research Center, the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the department of civil, structural and environmental engineering are just some of the university programs participating in the effort.
"For the university to get involved in this activity and provide this amount of support, it is no little achievement," Zicari said.
UB's Educational Opportunity Center is handling the application process and advertisement for the program. Approximately 35 residents will be accepted into the upcoming sessions.
Applicants must be 18 years of age or older and have a high school diploma or general equivalency diploma. Because recruitment is targeted at disadvantaged residents, college graduates are not considered for recruitment.
