The city of Whitefish’s permit to operate its wastewater treatment plant is expiring soon, and to get a new one the city will have to make significant upgrades to the system to meet federal water discharge standards.
“It could be several million dollars,” explained city council member John Anderson. “For example, Polson recently dramatically increased their sewer rates because of upgrades required by their Environmental Protection Agency permit. Whitefish is probably facing a similar situation in the near future.”
To help alleviate the cost, Gov. Steve Bullock on Friday announced that ratepayers in Whitefish will save $120,000 thanks to changes he made to the State Revolving Fund loan program earlier this year.
The savings come as part of a $300,000 State Revolving Fund loan that was approved to improve the city’s wastewater treatment system.
“Through strong fiscal management, and a bit of common sense, we’re ensuring ratepayers in Whitefish can keep more money in their pockets,” Bullock said in a statement. “We’ll continue to work with local communities to find responsible ways to make critical infrastructure improvements, while saving money for Main Street Montana businesses and customers.”
The State Revolving Fund loan program, which is administered by the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation and the Montana Department of Environmental Quality, is meant to enable Montana communities to upgrade or expand critical drinking or wastewater treatment facilities at the lowest possible cost.
The loan will help the city pay for important upgrades to its wastewater system that are already underway, including the installation of nearly 4,000 linear feet of new force main, which directs wastewater through a screening facility to allow for a more complete treatment process.
Greg Acton, the city’s utility operations supervisor, said a contractor that was hired to complete the project is already out digging.
“All of our wastewater will get screened when the project is finished,” he explained. “Right now, some of it doesn’t, because everything on the north side comes into a different line. We’re already spending the money, but this will help.”
Earlier this year, Bullock reduced the interest rates on loans through the State Revolving Fund loan program in order to expand local government’s access to capital to make important upgrades to local infrastructure, while saving ratepayers money.
The measures reduced long-term interest rates in the program from 3 percent to 2.5 percent, and reduced construction interest rates from 3 percent to 1.5 percent.
In addition, he reduced the amount of financial reserves communities must hold in order to receive a loan, and reduced the debt service coverage communities must have.
These changes were made possible through what Bullock’s statement called “strong fiscal management at the state level” and the state’s sterling bond rating. Bullock said that in their first year, the reduced rates are expected to provide $29 million in approved savings for ratepayers.
The changes to the State Revolving Fund interest rate were made as part of Bullock’s Main Street Montana Project, which is aimed building and implementing a business plan for the state of Montana that helps businesses grow, support job creation, and increase wages, according to a news release.
One of the goals of the project is to ensure Montana businesses and communities have an efficient and reliable infrastructure, Bullock said.
