A $477 million Environmental Protection Agency loan will help advance water infrastructure projects in Virginia’s Hampton Roads region.
The low-interest loan, given under the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) and announced Sept. 10, is the second piece of $1 billion in assistance the EPA is providing to the Hampton Roads Sanitation District (HRSD) as the local agency works to replenish the Potomac Aquifer, address rising sea levels and help protect the Chesapeake Bay.
The money will support HRSD’s Sustainable Water Initiative for Tomorrow (SWIFT) program, with about half going toward new projects that will reduce nutrients and sediment released into waterways. The second half of the funds will go toward ongoing work building “full-scale SWIFT facilities” that return clean water to the aquifer.
为了减少排放到詹姆斯河流域的沉积物的数量，该机构计划关闭80年历史的船港处理厂，并用新的抽水站代替。官员们预计该项目将耗资6500万美元。
The pumping station will send wastewater about 4 miles across the river to another facility in Nansemond for treatment before that water is discharged. Local officials said “a significant portion” of water treated at Nansemond will meet drinking water standards under SWIFT, allowing it to be returned to the aquifer instead of the river as it would have been before.
If the projects work as planned, SWIFT will eventually reduce HRSD’s wastewater discharges into the Chesapeake Bay watershed by 90%.
HRSD表示，补充含水层的收益远远超出了当地的供水。填充含水层可以阻止由于水抽水而导致的沉降，进而帮助保护沿海社区免受海洋的侵害。
为了连接河流对面的两个设施，HRSD计划在詹姆斯河下安装22,800英尺长的36英寸DIA管，估计成本为6500万美元，11,000英尺为32英寸DIA连接到含水层充电井的管道，再购买2000万美元。
AECOM’s Norfolk, Va., office is serving as engineering consultant on the projects.
在泵站转换和水下管道安装方面的工作将于2022年秋天开始。在项目出价之前，仍需要进行一些最终的设计工作和财产习得。新利18备用网址为了满足监管要求，当前的船港设施将在2025年底之前关闭。
HRSD总经理Ted Henifin表示，低廉的Wifia贷款将在30年内将该机构的项目成本降低近5亿美元。新利18备用网址新利18备用官网登录
“It’s all pretty amazing investments by our region for the future, solving multiple problems,” he said.
Wifia成立于2014年，目的是加快美国迄今为止美国水基础设施的投资，EPA官员表示，该计划已宣布58贷款，总计112亿美元的信贷援助，该项目价值240亿美元，并在此过程中创造了68,000个工作岗位。新利18备用网址
