SALT LAKE CITY – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced the first such loan in Utah to upgrade the Salt Lake City wastewater treatment plant, providing nearly $ 350 million to help the 55-year-old facility to take on new life to withstand earthquakes and meet nutrient limits set by the state.
Under the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, the $ 348.6 million loan to the Salt Lake City Department of Utilities will help the existing facility comply with new state regulatory requirements and build resilience from the system to earthquakes and floods.
EPA Associate Associate Administrator Doug Benevento in Salt Lake City for the announcement Thursday said nationally the program has provided $ 6.1 billion in credit assistance to help to finance 13 billion dollars for hydraulic infrastructures while creating 27,200 jobs.
With this investment in Utah, the loan will fund nearly half the cost of the $ 711 million upgrade.
“The rebuilding of Salt Lake City’s aging water harvesting facility and EPA’s funding tools is a significant win for the entire region,” said Greg Sopkin, EPA Regional Administrator for Mountains and the plains. “Together, we are improving the environmental and ecosystem health of the Great Salt Lake, improving the resilience of the community’s vital wastewater treatment services, saving money for the city and its taxpayers, and creating jobs in the process.
Salt Lake City and other wastewater treatment plants that dump into Great Salt Lake must meet new state nutrition standards by 2025 to reduce pollution that contributes to the formation of algae blooms harmful, particularly problematic for Lake Utah.
