Several smaller Mid-Missouri communities will benefit from recent state investments in water infrastructure.
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources on Nov. 18 awarded more than $410 million in grant funding for local communities to make drinking water, wastewater and stormwater improvements, and identify and address lead in water service lines.
Russellville, Eldon, Linn and Moniteau County's Public Water Supply District 1 were awarded grants to assist with inventorying lead service lines; Versailles and Morgan County PWSD 2 were awarded drinking water grants; and Fulton received a grant to make stormwater improvements.
Together, the projects represent a $6.3 million investment in community water infrastructure. Several other area cities and water districts applied for funding but were not selected.
DNR Director Dru Buntin said the department received about 1,000 applications requesting more than $2.4 billion in funding to address water infrastructure needs.
In Russellville, $165,500 in state funds will be used to finance the city's first lead service line inventory.
The project, which totals $170,500 with the city kicking in $5,000, will document the material water service lines are made of on both sides of the meter, Russellville City Clerk Jan Wyatt said. Water service lines carry water from the public water main to homes and buildings.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency identified lead pipes as the most common source of lead in drinking water. The federal government banned the use of lead pipes in new plumbing in 1986 and the rule took effect in Missouri in 1989, according to DNR. Plumbing installed before 1989 may contain lead, according to the state agency.
The Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water Act, passed in 2014, reduced the permissible amount of lead in pipes from 8 percent to a weighted average of 0.25 percent. The federal government and state are also requiring a service line inventory from community water systems by Oct. 16, 2024.
Wyatt said the state funding was critical for the city with a population of less than 800.
"This would have really hurt our budget," she said. "We're a very small community and spending almost $200,000 on something is just nearly impossible for us."
Wyatt said the city is waiting for DNR to send award documents to begin the process. Contractor bids to do the investigation should go out in 2023, she said.
"You always wonder how you're going to get something done that you're mandated to do, so the grant was just so helpful to us," Wyatt said.
Eldon, with a population of 4,432, was granted $178,000 in state funds for a similar project totaling $200,000. The city is contributing $22,000.
Linn is getting $92,753 from the state for its lead service line inventory project, which totals $93,703. The city of about 1,300 is contributing $950 to the project.
The application Moniteau County's PWSD 1 submitted for state funding was also approved. The $54,059 lead service line inventory project is split with $49,059 coming from the state and $5,000 from local taxpayers.
Fulton submitted an application for $316,316 in state funding to complete a $400,400 stormwater project, which was approved. The city of approximately 12,700 people is on the hook for $84,084 of the total project cost.
Versailles and Morgan County PWSD 2 were awarded drinking water grants.
Versailles was awarded $684,258.50 in state funding for a $866,150 drinking water project and is contributing $181,891.
Morgan County PWSD 2 submitted a request for nearly $4.9 million in state funds, which was also approved. Local taxpayers are contributing $100,000 to the $5 million project.
Paula Hendrix, president of the Morgan County PWSD 2 board, said the funds will be used to create a new well that will be larger than anything currently in the area and add new water meters and lines in as much of the district as funding allows.
The water district serves upwards of 500 households around Ivy Bend and relies on one large well and several smaller ones, Hendrix said.
She said the district's water quality is good but lines are "ancient" and falling apart. The district also has trouble locating water lines because of how they were implemented in the past. And a lot of the small wells feeding those lines can no longer keep up with the area's demand.
The new well will allow the district to close down many of the small wells that have maintenance issues, Hendrix said.
She said their replacement wouldn't have happened without state funding.
"We have a lot of lower income people that reside in that area of the community that do not have the resources or the funds that they are hesitant about even voting for a bond because of the concerns of what it may cost," Hendrix said.
"It's going to be a big ordeal, but we're going to get through it. We're going to make sure to do it and get everything taken care of because this is much-needed in the area for Ivy Bend," she continued. "It's going to be a big beneficial boost."
Gov. Mike Parson made water infrastructure a priority in budget recommendations to the Missouri General Assembly last session. The Republican governor suggested using $411.7 million of the state's share of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars for community investments and another $71.7 million on water infrastructure improvements at state facilities and parks.
"We knew this program was critically needed for communities across our state, and that's why we included it in this year's budget," Parson said in a news release announcing the grant awards. "While we know more is still needed to upgrade our infrastructure and ensure reliable water resources for the next generations, these grants will leverage even greater local and private investments to help boost our competitiveness for economic development projects and ensure our communities in every corner of Missouri are finding success."
Of the 171 entities that applied for lead service line inventory funding from the state, 89 were denied and 10 were waitlisted.
Fulton, California, Ashland, Cole County PWSD 4 and Osage County PWSDs 1 and 3 all applied for lead service line inventory funding but were rejected. Together, their asks totaled $902,687 for $1.1 million in necessary projects.
More than 370 entities applied for drinking water infrastructure funding, but only 40 were approved and 17 waitlisted.
Miller County, California, Ashland, Fulton, Russellville, Linn, Eldon, Callaway County PWSD 2, Moniteau County PWSD 1, Cole County PWSDs 4 and 5, and Osage County PWSDs 1, 2 and 3 all submitted applications for drinking water funding but were denied. The local requests totaled nearly $34.4 million on $38.6 million in total project costs.
Another 329 entities applied for wastewater infrastructure funding, which was given to 34 applicants. Approximately 289 applicants were denied funding.
Several Mid-Missouri municipalities applied for wastewater funding but didn't receive it. The list includes Jefferson City, Russellville, Eldon, Linn, Fulton, Callaway County Sewer District, Holts Summit, California, Ashland and Miller County. Their requests totaled nearly $35.8 million on more than $40.6 million in needed wastewater projects.
Stormwater funding went to 67 of 130 applicants, while 48 were denied.
St. Martins and Jefferson City were among those who applied but were rejected. St. Martins asked for $169,500 in state ARPA funds and would have kicked in $45,000 for a stormwater project totaling $214,500. Jefferson City was seeking $3,999,999 in state ARPA funds for a $5 million project. The Capital City would have contributed the remaining $1 million and $1.