District will continue wastewater treatment facility expansion
JEFFERSON CITY, MO, AUG. 22, 2025 – The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has awarded $95.8 million in financial assistance to the Little Blue Valley Sewer District in Independence. The district will use the funding for phase two of its Middle Big Creek Wastewater Treatment Facility expansion project. The combined loan and grant will cover the entire estimated cost of the project, which the district expects to complete by June 2028.
The expansion project is designed to address growth within the facility’s service area and improve wet weather resiliency. Extensive upgrades will improve the wastewater system’s effluent quality and overall efficiency while extending its service life.
Project funding consists of a $93 million loan and a $2.7 million grant through the department’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund. The department's assistance is estimated to save the district’s ratepayers $2.7 million in principal and approximately $87.3 million in interest over the loan’s 30-year term.
“Investing in the wellbeing of Missouri’s infrastructure is a catalyst to economic growth and prosperity,” said Kurt Schaefer, director of the Department of Natural Resources. “We will continue to fund upgrades to water infrastructure across Missouri to keep residents healthy and preserve our water resources while keeping customers’ bills affordable.”
The department’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund finances improvements to wastewater treatment facilities, sewer collection system rehabilitation and extensions, and combined sewer overflow corrections. The fund also finances security, efficiency and conservation measures. Communities that borrow from the fund benefit from the below-market interest rate and from a department project manager’s assistance throughout the project.
The department is committed to assisting Missouri communities with water and wastewater infrastructure improvement projects. Through its Financial Assistance Center, the department provides funding opportunities for qualified communities with water quality, wastewater and drinking water infrastructure needs. This project will be funded wholly or in part with monies received from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
For more information on wastewater and drinking water funding opportunities, visit dnr.mo.gov/water/what-were-doing/state-revolving-fund-srf.