The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has provided two new Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loans to the cities of Oceanside, Calif., and Salt Lake City.
EPA has allotted $69 million for the Pure Water Oceanside Project, a water reuse project that will purify recycled water to create a new source of high-quality drinking water that is clean, safe, drought-proof and sustainable, while reducing discharges into the ocean.
The $158 million project will supply Mission Basin with an additional 4.5 million gallons per day of purified water. The project also will reduce the demand for imported water by providing a local, drought-proof water supply produced by the city. EPA's WIFIA loan will finance nearly half of the entire cost of the project. The remaining project funds will come from a combination of grants, water system revenue backed obligations, and system funds.
The second WIFIA loan of $348.6 million will go to the Salt Lake City