More than a dozen communities across the state, including East Lyme, will receive grants from the state Department of Economic and Community Development for brownfield remediation and assessment activities, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced in a news release this week.

The $7.9 million in grants will go toward 187 acres of redevelopment, according to the release.

East Lyme will receive a $200,000 grant for an assessment of 224 Main St., the former Mobil Gas Station in downtown Niantic.

The town had purchased the property in March for $550,000 — almost six years after the proposal passed at referendum — and announced the site qualified for a state brownfield cleanup program. 

Malloy's news release stated that since 2011 his administration "has allocated more than $173 million in state funding for brownfield remediation and redevelopment in the form of loans and grants to municipalities and developers."

"For every dollar invested by the state, $5.45 has been or will be invested by non-state partners," the release continues. "Connecticut has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as one of the most active and innovative states nationwide in the remediation and redevelopment of brownfields."