The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $891 million to modernize rural drinking water and wastewater infrastructure in 43 states.
“Upgrading water infrastructure provides a path to economic growth and protects the health and safety of people who live and work in rural areas,” said USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Bette Brand in the press release. “Under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Perdue, USDA continues to be a strong partner to rural communities, because we know that when rural America thrives, all of America thrives.”
There are 220 projects to help improve rural water infrastructure for 787,000 residents, according to the USDA press release.
The projects are being funded through the Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant Program, which provides funding for: clean and reliable drinking water systems, sanitary sewage disposal, sanitary solid waste disposal, and storm water drainage to households and businesses in eligible rural areas with populations of 10,000 or less.
For instance, the city of Maquoketa, Iowa, is receiving a $6.2 million loan to replace water main lines in the Platt Street corridor. Since the water mains are old, undersized and corroding, the project will correct health and sanitary issues caused by frequent water main breaks. The city will also improve the storm water system and upgrade catch basins to better collect the runoff.
Pennsylvania’s Authority of the Borough of Charleroi is receiving a $10.6 million loan and a $1.8 million grant to construct a pump station, install a diversion chamber, install 1,500 feet of 18-inch gravity sewer line, and construct a shared force main.
The Town of Estes Park, Colorado, is being awarded a $7.7 million loan and a $2.4 million grant to improve and expand the Glacier Creek Water Treatment Plant. Once improvements are completed, the plant will be the sole source of water treatment year round, providing clean drinking water to people in the Estes Valley.
According to the USDA press release, the USDA investments are going to: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin and West Virginia.
