EPA selects Johnston, Iowa for WaterCARE program

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently selected Johnston, Iowa, and nine other communities from across the country to be a part of the Water Community Assistance for Resiliency and Excellence (WaterCARE) program, which provides assistance for drinking water and wastewater planning.

Through the program, the EPA will provide technical guidance and a total of $500,000 to the following communities: Buchanan County, Virginia; the City of Johnston, Iowa; the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribe, Montana; Gatesville, Texas; Haines Borough, Alaska; the Hoopa Valley Tribe, California; Lawrence, Massachusetts; Selma, Alabama; the Township of South Orange Village, New Jersey; and Youngstown, Ohio.

Each of these communities are home to fewer than 100,000 people and have median household income considerations. They also have public health challenges and are ready to undertake capital improvement projects that will further development of their water infrastructures. The EPA helps them in these endeavours with financial evaluations, asset management program development, assistance in finding financing options and partnership opportunities, training for decision-makers and in public engagement. Successes in these project will be shared with communities sharing similar constraints and requirements for their water infrastructure.