FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Robbie Wilbur 601/961-5277
September 9, 2009 MDEQ ANNOUNCES ARRA/WPCRLF FUNDING FOR DECATUR
(Jackson, Miss.) – The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) announced today that the Town of Decatur has been approved for a subsidized low-interest loan of $1,299,734 for wastewater infrastructure improvements. The funding is being made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) and the Water Pollution Control Revolving Loan Fund Program (WPCRLF) administered by MDEQ. The ARRA portion of the funding is a loan subsidy which will not have to be repaid. The WPCRLF portion will be repaid at a 1.75 percent interest rate over 20 years.
“We are pleased to award these funds to Decatur. Mayor Rushing and other local leaders worked diligently to produce an outstanding application. Properly constructed and maintained wastewater facilities are integral to protecting our environment and the public’s health, and we know this infrastructure will be of great benefit to Decatur” said Trudy Fisher, MDEQ Executive Director.
“Construction on this vital project would not have been accomplished without this funding,” said Decatur Mayor Randy Rushing.
The Town of Decatur will receive $1,299,734 for two contracts. The first contract is for the construction of an influent pump station and force main, curtain baffle replacement, 438 linear feet of sewer line, and the removal and disposal of the accumulated sludge and related appurtenances. The second contract includes the rehabilitation of 10,000 linear feet of sewer lines and 200 vertical feet of manhole rehabilitation. The WPCRLF amount is $194,960 and the ARRA amount totals $1,104,774.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) appropriated $4.0 billion for Title VI EPA Capitalization Grants to the states’ Clean Water State Revolving Funds. Mississippi’s Water Pollution Control Revolving Loan Fund (WPCRLF), administered by MDEQ, received $35,308,350. ARRA funds will be used, along with base WPCRLF Program loan funds, to jointly fund projects with the ARRA portion of each award in the form of a loan subsidy
Prior to final passage and enactment of ARRA, MDEQ conducted a comprehensive outreach campaign to alert potential borrowers of the possible availability of federal economic recovery stimulus funding. MDEQ then amended the FY-2009 WPCRLF Intended Use Plan to implement the funding in the most efficient manner, while providing the most benefit to the state. Details on the application and award process are in the amended Intended Use Plan which is available at:
http://www.deq.state.ms.us/MDEQ.nsf/pdf/SRF_FY-09IUPAmendment1/$File/IUPFY-09AmendmentNo1FINAL.pdf?OpenElement.
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