March 12, 2009
Thursday Headlines: House Passes Bill Authorizing $13.8 Billion for CWSRF
Today the House of Representatives passed the Water Quality Investment Act (H.R. 1262) by a vote of 317-101. The bill authorizes $13.8 billion over the next five years for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF), includes $2.5 billion over five years for sewer overflow control grants and requires sewage treatment plants to set up alert systems to notify the public within 24 hours of sewer overflows. Despite the good news, The bill still must be considered by the Senate and Congress has not passed an authorization for the CWSRF since 1994.
Headlines
The state of Michigan will use the $236 million for water and sewer infrastructure improvements it receives from the recently passed economic stimulus bill to reduce the cost of projects for municipalities. The cost of sewer projects will be reduced by 23% and the cost of water projects will be reduced by almost 40%.
A $1 million low-interest loan from Ohio EPA’s Water Pollution Control Loan Fund will help the city of Toledo finance construction to eliminate sanitary sewer overflows and basement backups.
Part of Narragansett Bay is now clean enough for swimming and shellfishing after Providence, Rhode Island fixed it’s combined sewer overflow problem by cutting a five-mile tunnel into the rock under the city capable of holding 60 million gallons of wastewater that otherwise would be released into the Providence River partially treated.
Among the earmarks in the federal spending bill President Barack Obama signed Wednesday were about $1.5 million for upgrades to Lynchburg’s sewer system. The money will go for upgrades to its combined sewer system.
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