ATLANTA, GA, JAN 23, 2018 -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded Franklin County, Kentucky a $512,000 grant for design and construction activities of wastewater treatment plants and collection systems in the lower Kentucky watershed.
"Projects like this one demonstrate the Trump Administration's commitment and focus on improving American's water quality by investing in water infrastructure," said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt.
"Franklin County Fiscal Court and the Farmdale Sanitation District appreciate the attention and assistance we have received from Tom Cooney, our Regional SAAP Coordinator with EPA Region 4, and the staff at the EPA, as well as Congressman Andy Barr of the sixth Congressional District in Kentucky and his staff for all their support in the process," said Franklin County Judge Executive Huston Wells.
The county acquired the Evergreen sewage disposal system and privately owned collection systems from the Farmdale and Coolbrook subdivisions in Farmdale. A county ordinance created the Farmdale Sanitation District to manage the daily operation of the system that services over 700 residents.
The 35-year-old system was inadequately maintained, experienced excessive incidences of inflow and infiltration (I&I), and system blockages that often led to sewer backups into homes and/or sewer bypasses into the local waterways.
In conjunction with $420,000 in matching funds from the county, this grant will allow for thorough evaluation of the collection systems, modernization of the existing design, and improvements to the system to reduce the amount of I&I, sewer bypasses into local waterways, and instances of backups into local homes.
Funding for this grant was made possible through the annual appropriations process. EPA is sometimes directed to provide funding to a specific entity for particular study, purpose, or activity. Special Appropriation Act Projects (SAAP) are not part of an established program, and EPA does not advocate or nominate drinking water, wastewater, or other water quality infrastructure projects for funding.
