Kenneth Corn, Oklahoma director for USDA Rural Development, announced last Tuesday that the department is making available more than $12.1 million in infrastructure improvements delivered under the Biden-Harris Administration for rural water and wastewater projects across Oklahoma.
These critical water infrastructure projects will impact Sequoyah, Atoka, Delaware, Major, Muskogee and Tulsa counties. The Biden-Harris Administration is making funding available under Rural Development’s water and environmental programs that focuses on delivering safe drinking water and sanitary waste disposal systems for rural communities. Additionally, grant funding has been made available for South Coffeyville to assist in purchasing a law enforcement vehicle.
“Both President Biden and Vice President Harris have made rebuilding America’s infrastructure a cornerstone of the Biden-Harris Administration,” Corn says. “Not only are these projects vital to ensuring safe drinking water standards are being delivered for communities like Boynton, Sand Springs, Atoka, Sallisaw and more, but we are also delivering good-paying jobs by investing in Oklahoma rural communities.”
Funding for these projects include:
• Sequoyah County Water Association — $2,697,000 loan and $674,000 grant, for improvements to a water system to deliver clean and accessible drinking water
• Tulsa County Water Improvement District #14 — $2,967,000 loan to replace water lines that will assist the water district in stopping high-water loss
• Boynton Public Works Authority — $876,000 grant and $293,000 loan to replace a water storage tank that will allow for the water district to meet water quality standards
• Delaware County Rural Water District #12 — $30,000 grant to develop an engineering and environmental report to find the best option to alleviate highwater loss in the water district
• Major County Rural Water District #1 — $599,000 emergency grant funding to provide replacement of a water transmission line
• Atoka Municipal Authority — $4,000,000 grant assistance that will aide in wastewater treatment plant repairs and improvements
• Town of South Coffeyville — $35,800 grant funding to purchase a new law enforcement vehicle “President Biden and Vice President Harris believe when we bet on rural Oklahoma families by investing in their future, then all of America wins. With more than a $12 million bet on our future, this is really about pride in what we can do together as a community and country when we focus on the projects that ensure long-term sustained economic growth,” Corn says. “I truly believe our best days are ahead of us, because we are continuing to deliver investments in Oklahoma that will have a major impact for generations to come.”
The USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways, Corn says. Under the leadership of the Biden-Harris Administration, the USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate-smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America.
To learn more, visit www.rd.usda.gov/ok.
