The Milton Water System has been awarded a $6.6 million loan from the Louisiana Department of Health’s Drinking Water Revolving Loan Fund (DWRLF) program to construct three new water wells, a water treatment plant and two storage tanks to improve its quality of service and expand its capacity for growth.
The three new water wells are each designed to produce approximately 1,000 gallons of drinking water per minute, while the new treatment plant can handle nearly 2 million gallons per day. The two new ground storage tanks will hold 500,000 gallons each.
The water system will also purchase high service pumps, a backwash settling basin, and a 500-kilowatt generator, Harrington said. All the newly constructed facilities will be located on a seven-acre tract off La. Highway 92, near the Miramar Boulevard intersection.
“We are currently in the first phase of the project, which includes clearing the land and constructing appropriate drainage. We anticipate receiving bids for construction of the new facilities by mid-December, with work beginning sometime in the spring,” Harrington said.
Funding for the project, which was awarded in September 2023, is provided through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that is part of a federal funding initiative for drinking water and wastewater system infrastructure improvement projects across the country. The initiative allows districts to obtain project funding at a greatly reduced cost.
The mandated principal forgiveness of the project is set at a value not to exceed $1,031,842.50, with the remaining amount provided as a low-interest loan. The maximum principal forgiveness value is set at 49%, with a cap of $3 million. The interest rate for the loan portion of the project has been set at 2.45%.
“Those projects that are eligible for these funds are those considered eligible under the DWRLF program annual capitalization grant,” said DWRLF Program Manager Joel McKenzie.
Congress established the State Drinking Water Revolving Loan Fund programs in 1996 as part of amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act. The program is jointly funded by an annual grant from the EPA (80%) and the individual participating states (20%).
In Louisiana, the program is administered by LDH’s Office of Public Health, which oversees DWRLF. Loans made through this program are low interest and have a maximum 30-year repayment period.
"Safe drinking water is fundamental to community health,” LDH Chief Engineer Amanda Ames said. “This program helps communities throughout Louisiana keep their water as safe as possible without placing an undue burden in the form of expensive financing.”
