May 30,2015-
from ACWA
Will Cut 90% Of Ammonia Pollution
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced a record $1.6 billion infusion of funds to help upgrade the Sacramento Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant so it may remove nearly 95% of ammonia from wastewater discharges into the Sacramento River and Bay Delta.
The allocation of Clean Water Act State Revolving Funds loans – touted as the largest single block of financing ever issued by the EPA – was announced by EPA Regional Administrator Jared Blumenfeld at a groundbreaking event at the existing treatment plant in Elk Grove. The wastewater treatment plant is part of the Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District.
According to EPA officials, the project – dubbed EchoWater – will bring the wastewater plant to advanced treatment levels that will allow the removal of nearly 95% of ammonia from wastewater discharges, thus protecting the Sacramento River and San Francisco Bay Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary.
“California’s economic security depends on a healthy Bay Delta, the largest and most important estuary on the West Coast,” said Blumenfeld in a prepared statement. “EPA’s Clean Water Act State Revolving Funds are a key investment in clean water infrastructure to protect this precious resource.”
Construction of the Sacramento Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade is expected to cost $2 billion and require more than eight years to complete. When finished, the wastewater discharges from the treatment plant are expected to meet new state water quality requirements to reduce discharges of ammonia, nitrates and other pollutants. The existing wastewater plant, which serves approximately 1.4 million peopl , is one of the largest sources of ammonia and nitrate pollution to the Bay Delta.
EPA officials stated in a press release that the $1.6 billion in low interest loans for the EchoWater Project will save ratepayers at least a half billion dollars during the life of the loan compared to traditional bond funding. Since 1989, EPA has invested $2.8 billion in the California Clean Water State Revolving Fund to help communities address critical infrastructure needs like wastewater treatment. The revolving funds are reinvested to provide a constant source of money to meet the state’s clean water infrastructure needs.
More information on the EchoWater Project is available at: www.EchoWaterProject.com