Funding to Help Improve Water and Wastewater Utility Resilience

EPA is making more than $6 billion available for loans to help fund water and wastewater projects, including through its new State infrastructure financing authority WIFIA (SWIFIA) program. The projects are designed to modernize, improve, and/or expand water and wastewater systems, including by making them more resilient to natural disasters and other challenges.

Through SWIFIA, EPA is providing loans to state financing authorities, which are also known as state revolving fund programs. The first-ever SWIFIA loan of $500 million was issued on January 5 to the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank. The funding will be used to support various water projects throughout the state. The SWIFIA program is a recent extension of EPA funding for water-related projects made available through the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA). At the start of 2023, the agency had already issued $17 billion in credit assistance for a combined $36 billion in water projects. EPA is currently accepting letters of interest for projects under the SWIFIA and WIFIA programs. In addition to what’s happening in New Jersey, others include a $91-million project in Texas to help water authorities maintain critical supply lines amidst persistent drought conditions and a new pump station and raw water line for a Massachusetts city that will help mitigate potential flooding. Read more at Water Online.