The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that it is investing $14 million on infrastructure in rural Wayne County, Pa.
The South Wayne County Water and Sewer Authority will receive a Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant of $14,879,000 to upgrade their wastewater treatment plant for its public sewer system. The plant currently serves residential communities located in Salem and Lake Townships, Pa. The plant is more than 40 years old, and the components have reached the end of their useful life.
“An investment in infrastructure of this magnitude will directly impact the lives of rural Americans in Pennsylvania,” Morgan said. “President Biden has created a roadmap for how we can build a better America, and this project is another milestone in that plan. With the build a better America agenda, USDA will be able to fund more critical projects in Pennsylvania like those announced today in the coming months and years.”
Since 2020, USDA Rural Development has invested $28 million in Wayne County through its more than 40 programs. In addition, more than $103 million was obligated in Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District.
“Upgrading our aging infrastructure is a top priority and an important part of how we bolster opportunity and prosperity,” said Rep. Matt Cartwright, a member of the House Appropriations Committee. “I have been and will remain a strong advocate for programs like this and will do all I can to help our communities get the funds they need to be attractive and safe places to live, work and play.”
The project will receive additional funding of a $3,879,000 loan and a $539,000 grant. The investment follows a more than $10 million loan and grant combination that was obligated in 2019.
Planning for the project began as early as 2003, and the Authority was happy to see the project come to fruition.
“[We] are very excited to have received the grant, as well as the low interest loans for our facility upgrades,” Jack Lennox, executive director for Roamingwood Sewer and Water, agent of, South Wayne County Water and Sewer Authority wrote in an email. “[The communities] will have one of the most state-of-the-art facilities in the country along with having a brand-new infrastructure.”
