Ms. Castagna had a 37-year career with the U.S. EPA, Region 1. She was an EPA certified Project Officer who managed a variety of brownfields projects throughout New England. She worked closely with communities who received EPA Brownfields Assessment, Cleanup or Revolving Loan Fund grants to ensure successful completion of these projects. She has experience working with rural communities, regional planning agencies, and large cities in helping them implement their brownfields program. That expertise includes site eligibility determinations, financial management, grant compliance, state partnerships and helping to identify additional funding streams for communities.
Ms. Castagna’s additional work in the brownfields arena included management of the Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Program for US EPA, Region 1. She coordinated all aspects of the Brownfields Job Training Program including requests for proposals, grant reviews, and grant management. She was a featured speaker at job training program graduation ceremonies in New England.
Prior to joining the Brownfields Program, she worked as the US EPA Region 1 Environmental Justice Coordinator. She was responsible for training the entire EPA staff of 715+ employees on the principles of environmental justice, including coordinating field trips to local EJ organizations. She chaired the EJ Council and led the effort to develop internal guidance on implementing EJ principles in the regional enforcement and compliance programs. She developed the EJ Action Plan and increased the awareness and understanding of engaging local stakeholders in EPA decision-making as it affected underserved communities.
Ms. Castagna has experience in developing Environmental Impact Statements under the National Environmental Policy Act. She was part of the project team that developed the EIS on the siting of the Boston Harbor Wastewater Facilities at Deer Island, MA – a multi-year effort. She also has extensive experience in federal procurement processes.