On December 3rd, the EPA announced that Charlotte Water’s $169 million Mallard Creek Sewer Basin Wastewater Collection and Treatment Improvements program achieved one of 39 new invitations to the competitive Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loans program.
Charlotte Water is excited and proud to apply for funding under the EPA’s WIFIA program. Funding for Charlotte Water projects allows us to leverage rate payer fees to make critical improvements to our community’s aging infrastructure.
The EPA’s WIFIA program helps empower borrowers across the United States to achieve their infrastructure improvement goals through financial tools targeted at keeping rates affordable for large projects.
The Mallard Creek Sewer Basin Wastewater Collection and Treatment Improvements program is part of Charlotte Water’s five-year, $1.7 billion capital plan. This plan is part of the City’s Community Investment Program, or CIP, which appropriates dollars from specific funding sources for capital, or construction and
improvement projects. Charlotte Water’s CIP projects place Charlotte in a position to ensure local and regional growth. To learn more about Community Investment, please see our webpage.
Mallard Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant and Improvements
Charlotte Water plans to make infrastructure improvements to add capacity to the Mallard Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant over the next few years. The plant was built in 1979 and handles wastewater treatment for residents and businesses in the Mallard Creek and Back Creek basins.
In the past few years, the Mallard Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant has operated close to its allowed limit and is expected to exceed it by 2021. This is due to increased growth in the area aligned with the extension of the Blue Line from Uptown Charlotte to UNC Charlotte.
This project will increase the allowed limit to phased levels of expansion, expected to accommodate current and expected growth over the next three to 12 years. Expanding the capacity is critical in order to accommodate development in the area. Stay tuned about this and other capital improvement projects on our projects page.
