$7.8 million low interest loan to fund Ohio treatment plant upgrades

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency recently announced a $7.8 million low-interest loan for Hamilton County to improve the water quality in Muddy Creek via improvements at the Muddy Creek Treatment Plant.

The loan will be provided through the Water Pollution Control Loan Fund (WPCLF) and will save Hamilton County $1.1 million in interest payments based on conventional market rates. Funded through federal grants, repayment of loans and investments in bonds, the WPCLF has supported improvements, development and implementation of publicly owned treatment works, agricultural best practices, community and home sewage systems and stormwater projects, among others. The program, which was created in 1989, also provides technical assistance for projects it funds.

Hamilton County will use its low-interest loan to reduce odors at the Muddy Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant and make the facility more resilient to high sewage volumes typical of wet weather events. The county will add two centrifuge units and an odor control system to the plant's dewatering building and improve the plant’s primary settling tanks, which will allow it to operate at its peak flow capacity. These improvements will lead to fewer sewage discharges into Muddy Creek, improving its water quality and reducing public exposure to untreated sewage.