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Department of Ecology News Release - January 15, 2008
08-013
OLYMPIA – The Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) proposes to send approximately $72 million in loans and grants to 32 projects to protect the state’s water quality, including Puget Sound.
Ecology seeks public comments on the draft list of grants and loans it proposes to offer to the highest quality, most needed and most ready-to-go projects to improve and protect water quality across the state.
Ecology will hold a public meeting about the draft list at 10 a.m., Jan. 30, at the Pierce County Library Processing and Administrative Center, 3005 - 112th St. E. in Tacoma.
The funding helps pay for projects such as wastewater treatment (sewer) plant upgrades; sewer collection system improvements; on-site septic system repairs and replacements; water reclamation and reuse facilities; water pollution cleanup planning and implementation; streamside restoration projects; stormwater management planning and implementation; public information and education; groundwater protection; and water quality data collection and monitoring.
Ecology selected the 32 projects from a pool of 64 applications, plus legislative provisos and prior commitments, amounting to more than $280 million.
Of the 32 projects, Ecology proposes funding to help pay for construction of wastewater treatment plants in financially distressed Coulee City, Concrete, Blaine and Airway Heights. In addition, Ecology proposes to fund projects in three communities for sewer planning, design or construction. It proposes funding for 25 projects to control “non-point” source pollution across the state. Non-point source pollution is pollution from many different, hard-to-trace sources with no obvious point of discharge.
Ecology proposes to fund 15 Puget Sound projects with loans and grants worth approximately $50 million. These include an $11 million loan to King County to construct a discharge pipe from its Brightwater wastewater treatment plant at Point Wells. Also, Blaine will receive nearly $28 million in loans and grants to build the Lighthouse Point Water Reclamation Facility, a state-of-the-art wastewater treatment plant that will produce highly treated wastewater that can be re-used. The project aims to improve the health of local shellfish beds.
Among other Puget Sound funding, Ecology proposes to award Kitsap County Health a $469,000 grant to target bacteria pollution from septics, stormwater and small acreage farms. Jefferson County Public Health is slated to get a $169,000 grant to improve water quality and shellfish growing area at Mats Mats Bay. Clallam County is on tap to receive $242,000 in grants to test a “do-it-yourself” program for homeowners to inspect their own septic systems.
Ecology’s annual funding assistance is based on state and federal budget approvals and outcomes of its ranking system of most-needed projects. Final decisions on funding will occur after the 2008 Legislative budget and appropriation process.
Entities may apply for loans and grants from Ecology’s integrated, one-stop application process that taps into three separate funding accounts. The accounts are the state Centennial Clean Water Fund, the Water Pollution Control State Revolving Fund and the federal Clean Water Act Section 319 Nonpoint-Source Program.
The Centennial Clean Water Fund provides low-interest loans and grants for wastewater treatment facilities and grants for activities to reduce nonpoint sources of water pollution. The State Revolving Loan Fund provides low-interest loans for wastewater treatment facilities and related activities to reduce nonpoint sources of water pollution. The Section 319 Nonpoint Source Program provides grants to reduce nonpoint sources of water pollution.
Ecology distributes the grants and loans and provides technical assistance to qualifying communities.
Details about the proposed projects are online at: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/funding/2009/index.html
The public may send written comments until 5 p.m., Feb. 15, to Jeff Nejedly at Department of Ecology, Water Quality Program, P.O. Box 47600, Olympia, WA 98504-7600. They may also e-mail Nejedly at jnej461@ecy.wa.gov or send a fax to 360-407-7151. If people have questions about the meeting or the funding proposals, they can call Nejedly at 360-407-6566.
The offers are for the state’s 2009 fiscal year, which is July 1, 2008 through June 30, 2009.
The next opportunity to apply for these funds will occur Sept. 1 through Oct. 31 for the state’s fiscal year 2010 funding cycle. For information about Ecology’s loan and grant program, go online at: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/funding/indexfunding.html
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Media Contact: Sandy Howard, 360-407-6408; (cell) 360-791-3177; email srud461@ecy.wa.gov
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
