News Releases from Region 10

EPA honors innovative and sustainable water infrastructure projects in Alaska, Idaho and Washington

SEATTLE – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recognized exceptional clean water and drinking water infrastructure projects in Alaska, Idaho and Washington within the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund programs.

“The Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds are a key resource to help communities modernize their aging water infrastructure to protect people’s health and the environment,” said Chris Hladick, EPA’s regional administrator in Seattle. “These innovative projects represent exceptional ingenuity by our state and local partners to improve water quality in Pacific Northwest and Alaska communities.”

The State Revolving Funds (SRF) are EPA-state partnerships that provide communities with a source of low-cost financing for water quality and drinking water infrastructure projects. EPA’s SRFs have provided more than $170 billion in financial assistance to over 39,900 water quality infrastructure projects and 14,500 drinking water projects across the nation.

EPA’s PISCES and AQUARIUS programs celebrate excellence in innovation, sustainability and public health protection demonstrated by Clean Water and Drinking Water SRF programs and local funding recipients. This year, four projects were recognized by the PISCES and AQUARIUS programs in Region 10:

Petersburg Borough (Alaska) will replace its Scow Bay Pump Station 1 with high efficiency pumps and an intelligent electronic control system. The upgrades are expected to increase the sewer system’s reliability and lower overall energy costs by 52%.

Boise School District (Idaho) replaced 1,597 old lead faucets in 20 schools with new, lead-free water efficient fixtures. The project helped to reduce lead exposure in drinking water for students and will save an estimated 1.7 million gallons of water a year.

Liberty Lake Sewer and Water District (Washington) upgraded its well and booster pumps, its reservoir, and consolidated services with the East Side Liberty Lake Improvement Club. The upgrades and consolidation will help provide the community with safer, more reliable and affordable drinking water.  

Oak Harbor (Washington) constructed a new membrane bioreactor system to replace two aging wastewater facilities. This project doubled treatment capacity and produces a high-quality effluent that can be used as reclaimed water for irrigation of the city’s community green spaces.

To see the full list of PISCES recognized projects, visit: https://www.epa.govhttps://www.epa.gov/cwsrf/pisces.

To see the full list of AQUARIUS recognized projects, visit https://www.epa.govhttps://www.epa.gov/dwsrf/announcing-2019-aquarius-recognition-program.

Learn more about EPA’s Pacific Northwest Region 10: www.epa.govhttps://www.epa.gov/aboutepa/epa-region-10-pacific-northwest

Follow EPA Region on Twitter: @EPAnorthwest and Facebook: @eparegion10