An additional $5.4 million is set to flow into the City of Henderson to target drinking water and wastewater projects, most of which will go to fund the Sandy Creek Basin Sewer Rehab project.
The money comes from the American Rescue Plan Act and the state Water Infrastructure Authority approved funding for the local projects, according to information from the office of Rep. Terry Garrison, who serves District 32 – Vance, Granville and Warren counties.
In addition to $5 million designated for the Sandy Creek project, two allotments of $200,000 each were awarded to the city to conduct asset inventories and assessment planning for both water and wastewater.
“I am happy to see this critical funding come from the Department of Environmental Quality to Henderson,” Rep. Terry Garrison said. “Clean water is essential for every North Carolinian. This money is going to help Henderson ensure that everyone has access to clean, safe water.”
City Manager Terrell Blackmon told WIZS News Friday that this money will be used to address excess water that flows into sewer pipes from groundwater and stormwater, known as “infiltration and overflow.”
The $5 million is added to $2.5 million, zero interest loan the city got last year from the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, Blackmon said.
“The other $400,000 will be used to perform a water study centered around inspecting our water lines…(to) help us better map our system,” he added.
Granville and Warren counties also received chunks of money for improvements to their water systems, Garrison’s office noted.
The City of Oxford got more than $9.5 million to fund sewer system improvements and the South Granville Water and Sewer Authority was awarded $150,000.
Warren County got money for three projects totaling $745,000. The breakdown includes two planning grants: a $189,500 planning grant for a regional elevated storage tank and a $400,000 pre-construction planning grant for the Eatons Ferry sewer extension and $155,500 for the Pleasant Hill pump station replacement.