The latest states to receive American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) funding for water-related projects include Oklahoma, Louisiana, Georgia and Maryland.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has made a partial award of $191,880 to the Oklahoma Office of the Secretary of the Environment under the ARRA. A total of $39 million will be awarded nationally to states for Water Quality Management Planning (WQMP) grants, which will keep and create jobs to help prevent water pollution and protect human health and the environment.
Oklahoma has also been approved for an additional $127,920 in WQMP funding, which will be awarded soon. These funds were approved after the state met further grant requirements.
The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality received $435,200.
The Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority received $66,261,000. The funds will go to the state's Clean Water State Revolving Fund program.
The Maryland Department of the Environment has received more than $121.6 million. The state’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund program will receive $94.78 million. It provides low-interest loans for water quality protection projects for wastewater treatment, non-point source pollution control, and watershed and estuary management. The Drinking Water State Revolving Fund program will receive $26.83 million.
Many of the clean water projects in Maryland will aid in the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay and watershed, helping to reduce excess nutrients from wastewater treatment plants and other sources by upgrading waste water treatment plants, sewer and water main upgrades and other much needed infrastructure projects which are in the Bay watershed.
“The Recovery Act investments are meeting urgent needs for economic growth and protecting human health and the environment,” said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. “Communities across the nation can count on green jobs to help pull them out of this downturn and ensure the long-term strength of our economy and our environment.”
For information on EPA’s implementation of ARRA, visit www.epa.gov/recovery.
Source: EPA
