EPA loans South Sioux City $40 million for wastewater upgrades

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will provide a $40 million Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loan to South Sioux City, Nebraska, for upgrades and expansions to its wastewater treatment facility.

South Sioux City will use WIFIA financing for its Wastewater Treatment Facility Expansion Project, which will directly provide wastewater services to residential and commercial customers rather than transporting wastewater to a neighboring city for treatment.

This project includes the planning, design, and construction of the expansions that are ultimately expected to reduce operating costs. The city will also collect and sell biogas to a nearby natural gas facility, which will offset rate increases and create affordable energy.

South Sioux City is a small community with a population of 14,000 and was able to finance over 60% of the total project costs with this WIFIA loan. EPA’s WIFIA program provides flexibility for the city to spread loan payments gradually over time to reduce impacts on wastewater bills. EPA’s WIFIA loan will save the city $15 million over the life of the loan.

WIFIA has about $11 billion in flexible financing available to support additional water infrastructure projects across the country, including in small communities and rural America where WIFIA can finance up to 80% of project costs. Additionally, the agency’s State WIFIA program has about $3 billion available for loans to State infrastructure financing authorities.

EPA is currently accepting letters of interest for funding through WIFIA and State WIFIA.