(NAFB) – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says USDA is funding projects in 20 states designed to protect public health by improving water quality and public sanitation services. The projects, funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, are expected to provide construction jobs and create infrastructure needed to support community growth. In fact, the Secretary says these projects – will create urgently needed jobs when they are built and will support more job creation through rural economic development for years to come.
For example, the town of Norway, Maine, has been selected to receive a 385-thousand dollar loan and a 1.1-million dollar grant for wastewater system alterations. The project will replace ageing clay pipes, service lines and manholes. The new waste water system will reduce the waste water discharge from the Norway treatment facility into the Little Androscoggin River.
And in Pitt County, North Carolina, the town of Bethel has been selected to receive a 256-thousand dollar loan and a 2.4-million dollar grant to replace an aging water system that is constructed of iron, galvanized steel and asbestos-laden concrete pipes. The tap water has a high iron level and is discolored.
