JEFFERSON CITY, MO, APRIL 11, 2019 - The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has awarded more than $850,000 in grants to Missouri communities for wastewater improvements.
"Clean water is critical to the health and economic wellbeing of every community in Missouri," said Governor Mike Parson. "Investing in our aging wastewater infrastructure helps protect human health and the environment and allows for the future growth of our communities."
The department’s Rural Sewer Grants offer gap funding to upgrade equipment to meet increasingly stringent requirements for wastewater treatment. The grant is available to communities or sewer districts serving 10,000 or fewer people.
Salem will receive a $500,000 Rural Sewer Grant to construct a new wastewater influent screening facility for peak flow disinfection and to remove grit and debris during the treatment process. The city has secured other funds for the balance of the project cost.
The department’s Small Community Engineering Assistance grants offer funding to small communities to hire an engineering consultant to develop a report that identifies the wastewater system improvements needed to continue reliable service and meet permit requirements.
The following communities will receive Small Community Engineering Assistance grants:
- Appleton City: $47,920 to identify ways to prevent lagoon overflows, add disinfection and reduce inflow and infiltration into the wastewater system. Inflow and infiltration is groundwater, stormwater or drinking water that flows directly into the sewer system, resulting in higher volumes of water being unnecessarily transported and treated, resulting in increased energy usage and costs.
- Cleveland: $50,000 to identify wastewater system improvements needed to continue reliable service and meet permit requirements.
- Crocker: $16,640 to develop a plan for operating the wastewater treatment plant more efficiently.
- Duenweg: $50,000 to identify wastewater improvements needed to meet its permit requirements and evaluate inflow and infiltration issues within the city’s wastewater collection system.
- Holden: $50,000 to develop a hydrology and engineering study that will identify potential wastewater system improvements to help the community plan for future growth.
- Leeton: $50,000 to identify wastewater improvements needed to meet its permit requirements and help the community plan for future growth.
- Nevada: $48,000 to examine how the system should address inflow and infiltration issues within the wastewater collection system.
- Sheldon: $39,200 to identify improvements needed to meet future permit requirements and help the community plan for future growth.
"Small towns like Holden struggle to provide the best, safest and most environmentally conscious services we can to our population," said Katy Barrett, chairman of the Holden Board of Public Works in an email thanking the department. "This grant will allow us to strengthen our wastewater treatment system against the effects of significant devastating rain events."
"Water and wastewater systems are essential infrastructure that support the health and economic vitality of a community," said Carol Comer, director of the Department of Natural Resources. "We are committed to working with communities to assist with water and wastewater infrastructure improvement projects."
The department provides funding opportunities for communities with water quality, wastewater, and drinking water infrastructure needs. For more information, visit https://dnr.mo.gov/env/wpp/srf/index.html.