FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: Aug. 20, 2009
Contact: Kendra Barkoff
(202) 208-6416
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced today that the Bureau of Reclamation has selected a Challenge Grant project in Utah that will receive more than $3.6 million under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).
Through the Challenge Grant Program’s Water Marketing and Efficiency Grants, Reclamation provides 50/50 cost share funding to states and irrigation and water districts for projects focused on water marketing, conservation and efficiency. Projects are selected through a competitive process, based on their ability to meet the goal of improving sustainable water supplies in the western United States. The projects include:
The Davis & Weber Counties Canal Company of Sunset, Utah has been selected for $3,674,598 of ARRA funding for a canal lining, forebay channel and headworks replacement project. The project includes the automation of the project’s headgates and the lining of 1,339 feet of canal with reinforced concrete.
The grant is part of a $40 million investment in water conservation, efficiency, and water marketing projects that is part of President Barack Obama’s $1 billion investment of ARRA funding provided by the Department of the Interior for water projects across the West.
The purposes of the ARRA are, among others, to quickly and prudently commence activities that preserve and create jobs promoting economic recovery and to invest in infrastructure providing long-term economic benefits. ARRA funding must be obligated by Sept. 30, 2010, and the identified projects must meet specific milestones and timetables or their funding could be reconsidered. Of the nearly $40 million in funding announced by the Department today, the Bureau of Reclamation will utilize about $1.95 million to ensure the projects’ compliance with federal regulations and statutes as well as adherence to the Recovery Act goals.
Recipients of the Challenge Grant funding announced today must meet specific requirements such as demonstrating complete compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act and other environmental laws; have an approved determination of financial capability; and an executed cooperative agreement for financial assistance.
Since 2004, 154 Challenge Grant projects have been funded, not including the ARRA-funded projects in this announcement. To date, $34 million in Federal funding combined with local partnerships translates into almost $145 million worth of water management improvements in 16 western states. Those 154 projects create new water banks, promote the use of advanced technology to improve water management, and increase collaboration among Federal, State, tribal and local entities.
Secretary Salazar has pledged unprecedented levels of transparency and accountability in the implementation of the Department’s economic recovery projects. The public will be able to follow the progress of each project on www.recovery.gov and on www.interior.gov/recovery. Secretary Salazar has appointed a Senior Advisor for Economic Recovery, Chris Henderson, and an Interior Economic Recovery Task Force to work closely with Interior’s Inspector General and ensure the recovery program is meeting the high standards for accountability, responsibility and transparency set by President Obama.
For more information on Reclamation’s Challenge Grant Program, please visit the following:
Challenge Fact Sheet: http://recovery.doi.gov/press/bureaus/bureau-of-reclamation/arra-challenge-grant-fact-sheet/
Challenge Grant Descriptions: http://recovery.doi.gov/press/bureaus/bureau-of-reclamation/arra-challenge-grant-descriptions/
Challenge Grants: http://recovery.doi.gov/press/bureaus/bureau-of-reclamation/bureau-of-reclamation-challenge-grants/
