An excerpt from Mary Scott Nabers' Insights, Opportunities by Mary Scott Nabers The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rang in 2023 with a new program designed to provide funding for critical water infrastructure projects. Now, the EPA is providing loans to state financing authorities which are also known as state revolving fund programs. This new program was named after the law Congress passed to create it. It is called the State Infrastructure Financing Authority Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (SWIFIA).
The SWIFIA program is a recent extension of EPA funding for water-related projects. At the start of 2023, the agency had already issued $17 billion in credit assistance for a combined $36 billion in water projects. That total is increasing daily. The EPA is currently accepting letters of interest for another $6.5 billion available for water projects under the WIFIA program. That annual funding revenue is available to be leveraged to support $13 billion in water infrastructure improvements across the country.
A $91 million project in Bell County, Texas will help water authorities maintain critical supply lines amidst persistent drought conditions. The Brazos River Authority will spearhead the large initiative that will include construction of a new underground pipeline between two bodies of water within the county. The pipeline will carry water from Belton Lake to the reservoir at Stillhouse Hollow Lake as a way of offsetting drought impacts on the region’s water supplies. Construction of the pipeline will satisfy objectives identified in the county’s drought plan while also mitigating the impacts of recurring flood events.
America’s water infrastructure is of great concern and the new funding is available now to ensure that needed water resources are available for future generations and that water is clean and safe for drinking now.
About the Author:
As President and CEO of Strategic Partnerships, Inc., Mary Scott Nabers has decades of experience working in the publicprivate sector. A well-recognized expert in the P3 and government contracting fields, she is often asked to share her industry insights with top publications and through professional speaking engagements.
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