WATERVLIET, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – Tuesday, Governor Gretchen Whitmer awarded more than $14 million in grants under the umbrella of the MI Clean Water plan to help 28 Michigan cities, villages and townships better ensure safe, clean tap water for residents.
“By making critical investments in our water infrastructure, we can create thousands of good-paying jobs and protect access to safe drinking water and drive down costs for families and communities,” Governor Whitmer said. “The MI Clean Water plan is a game-changer for Michigan and we should continue building on it to replace all lead service lines statewide, tackle toxic contaminants, and lower utility bills for families.”
The grants, issued through the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) support work including replacing lead service lines, enhancing water affordability plans, and connecting homes with contaminated drinking water wells to safe community water supplies.
The MI Clean Water plan is a $500 million investment announced by Governor Gretchen Whitmer last year to rebuild the state’s water infrastructure through investments in communities.
It addresses water infrastructure issues that Michigan faces such as lead-laden water service lines, toxic contamination like per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), undersized sewers, failing septic systems, unaffordable water rates and constrained local budgets.
This investment includes a proposal combining federal dollars for lead service line replacement in low-income communities ($102.1 million) with bonding authority for water quality protection ($290 million), a one-time General Fund appropriation for drinking water infrastructure and innovation ($105 million), and asset management grants ($2.9 million) to help communities develop, update and improve their plans for wastewater and stormwater.
Three types of grants are available, which are listed below:
- The Drinking Water Asset Management (DWAM) grant is available to assist water supplies in asset management plan development or updates, and/or distribution system materials inventory as defined in Michigan’s Lead and Copper Rule.
- The Affordability and Planning Grant (AP) grant is available to any community water supply and local unit of government, including counties, townships, cities, villages and others to assist in planning and/or rate studies.
- The Consolidation and Contamination Risk Reduction (C2R2) grant funds projects that remove or reduce PFAS or other contaminants, as defined under state or federal drinking water regulations, or efforts to consolidate systems or connect private residential wells to a local municipal system.
In the Southwest Michigan area, the City of Watervliet will be receiving a DWAM grant of $113,540.
To find out more about which cities are receiving grants, click here.
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