News Releases from Region 01

EPA Recognizes Vermont Project to Protect Drinking Water Infrastructure

BOSTON - A project in Waterbury, Vt., was among four projects in New England to repair and upgrade drinking water infrastructure that were recognized for excellence and innovation by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The Village of Waterbury, Vt., was recognized for its wastewater treatment facility upgrade.

"The Clean Water State Revolving Fund program helps communities and water systems through low-interest loans that can be used to update aging infrastructure, create jobs, and protect the public health and the environment," said EPA New England Regional Administrator Alexandra Dunn. "The scale and complexity of the projects that are being recognized show the determination and creativity of EPA's partners in achieving water quality goals."

The Waterbury Wastewater Treatment Facility discharges into the Winooski River, which discharges to Lake Champlain. To meet the phosphorus limits for Lake Champlain, the village installed an advanced phosphorus removal system that achieves the desired output of solids and rain, while removing more organics than the aerated lagoon wastewater treatment process in use previously. This new system has shown a decrease in solids being discharged. A new building was constructed for the system and a new sludge drying bed structure was built to dewater and store the chemical sludge before it goes to a landfill. This $7.3 million project was funded mostly by federal and state grants, with a Clean Water State Revolving Fund loan to cover the rest.

The other projects were in Lewiston-Auburn, Maine, Newport, R.I. and Grafton, Mass. These were among 30 honored nationwide as part of the Clean Water State Revolving Fund program.

Background

The Clean Water State Revolving Fund, a federal-state partnership, gives communities a permanent, independent source of low-cost financing for a wide range of water quality infrastructure projects. Over the past 31 years, its programs have provided more than $132 billion in financing for water quality infrastructure.

Within the Clean Water State Revolving Fund program, a "Performance and Innovation in the SRF Creating Environmental Success" program celebrates innovation. The projects that were recognized through this program ran the gamut from large wastewater infrastructure projects to small decentralized and agriculture projects.

Learn more about each of the 2018 PISCES recognized projects at https://www.epa.gov/cwsrf/pisces.