Investing in Our Utility Infrastructure is Part of Short and Long Term Recovery Over the course of the last year, there have been a number of times in our lives when we have heard the words “canceled,” “postponed,” or “to be determined.” With vaccinations underway, I am hopeful that in the very near future we will again be able to schedule much needed family and social gatherings, and that includes UCANE member events. However, one thing that remains the same is the need to upgrade our deteriorating drinking water, wastewater, and underground utility infrastructure. The list of capital projects in this month’s magazine empathizes this point.
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t this time of year, we traditionally publish the MassDEP’s DRAFT Intended Use Plan (IUP) list of drinking water and clean water projects for the upcoming year, along with a list of water infrastructure projects from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) and the Boston Water & Sewer Commission (BWSC) in our magazine. The MassDEP IUP lists are projects approved to be funded by loans from the State Revolving Fund (SRF) program, the primary source for water infrastructure funding in Massachusetts. While this is a DRAFT list, highlights include $539 million ($120 million more than 2020) for 45 new Drinking Water projects and approximately $166 million ($31 million more than 2020), which is being offered to finance 21 new construction projects. In addition, a minimum of $79.5 million in the form of loan forgiveness will be available for communities that might otherwise not be able to afford to undertake a project. This is an element of the program that UCANE has strongly supported, and we believe needs to be expanded to provide further incentives for municipalities and authorities to act now. The lists of projects from the MWRA and BWSC show that the number of critical projects is extensive and limited only by the amount of available funding. These lists can be found beginning on page 23 and is also posted on our website, www.ucane.com. Also, these lists, while impressive in scope, repFEBRUARY, 2021
resent merely a fraction of the projects needed to address the problem. Municipalities along the Merrimack River, for instance, have just begun to address the combined sewer overflow (CSO) issues that resulted in 800 million gallons of untreated sewage and stormwater being released into the river in 2018. The price tag for that alone is estimated at $1.6 billion. Statewide, additional factors such as climate resiliency, stormwater, lead, and emerging contaminants, such as PFAS, have only added to the $18 billion–$21 billion water infrastructure funding gap that had previously been identified. While the pandemic has caused a fiscal crisis that will lead to tough choices in the coming months for our elected officials, reducing funding or delaying water infrastructure projects would be shortsighted and will only impede our recovery. These projects not only continue to ensure the health and safety of our citizens, they also are crucial tools for our economic recovery. The benefits that come from the associated construction jobs and the opportunity for economic growth provided by access to clean water, far outweigh the costs. By investing now in our drinking water, wastewater, and underground infrastructure, we will not only stimulate our immediate recovery, but also provide the blueprint for economic prosperity in the years to come. n
“BUY FROM THE ADVERTISERS IN CONSTRUCTION OUTLOOK”
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