FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Robbie Wilbur 601/961-5277
September 18, 2009 MDEQ ANNOUNCES $4.6 MILLION IN WASTEWATER FUNDING FOR RIDGELAND
(Jackson, Miss.) – The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) announced today that the City of Ridgeland has been approved for a subsidized low-interest loan of $4,685,918 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 Ridgeland. Mayor McGee 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 Ridgeland” said Trudy Fisher, MDEQ Executive Director.
“A new sanitary sewer interceptor in the White Oak Creek Basin will better serve the needs of property owners in the western growth area of the City of Ridgeland. This system eliminates the need of pump stations and utilizes gravity sewer mains. Thus, it qualified as a green project with EPA because of energy savings. The City of Ridgeland appreciates the cooperation of the public during the acquisition of rights of way and easements. This is a long anticipated project and I am thrilled to see it becoming reality,” said Ridgeland Mayor Gene McGee.
The City of Ridgeland will receive $4,701,730 for the White Oak Creek Sewer Interceptor, 18,900 linear feet of 8 to 30 inch gravity sewer main, and other equipment. The WPCRLF amount is $2,342,959 and the ARRA amount totals $2,342,959.
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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