Congressman Clay Fuller, who represents Georgia’s 14th Congressional District, joined federal, state and local officials in Chickamauga Friday to highlight $6 million in federal funding aimed at cleaning up and redeveloping contaminated or underused properties across Northwest Georgia.

Fuller appeared at the Chickamauga Civic Center with EPA Region 4 Administrator Kevin McOmber and other officials for the announcement.

The largest portion of the funding — $4 million — is going to the City of Chickamauga for cleanup of the former Crystal Springs Print Works property. Officials hope remediation of the former industrial site will allow the property to eventually be returned to productive use.

The announcement also has a broader Northwest Georgia impact.

The Northwest Georgia Regional Commission is receiving $1.5 million to assess properties throughout the region for possible redevelopment. That grant is particularly significant locally because the Regional Commission serves Chattooga County and other counties across Northwest Georgia.

Another $500,000 is going to the Rome-Floyd County Development Authority to expand its inventory of brownfield properties and conduct assessments of potential redevelopment sites.

Brownfields are properties where actual or suspected contamination can complicate redevelopment. EPA funding can be used to identify environmental problems, conduct assessments and, depending on the grant, help clean up sites so they can be put back into productive use.

EPA Regional Administrator Kevin McOmber said the goal extends beyond environmental cleanup, with brownfield redevelopment potentially supporting economic development, job creation and improvements to surrounding communities.

Friday’s event also brought Fuller back to an area he knows well. Before being sworn into Congress in April, Fuller served as district attorney for the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit, which includes Walker, Dade, Catoosa and Chattooga counties. The U.S. House Clerk lists Fuller as the current representative for Georgia’s 14th District.

Fuller is also scheduled to be in Chattooga County Tuesday evening, when he will speak at the Chattooga County Republican Party’s September meeting in Summerville.