Governor announces $3.3 million wastewater pretreatment projects
Governor Phil Scott and the Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC’s) Wastewater Program today announced $3.3 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) awards to help municipalities and businesses improve their wastewater quality through removing pollutants early in the process and ensuring adequate capacity for wastewater treatment. This is the second round of funding that will be used to install and upgrade wastewater treatment infrastructure at businesses in Vermont.
“Investing in municipal wastewater infrastructure has many benefits, including economic development opportunities, increasing housing capacity and more,” said Governor Scott. “My team will continue to support these critical infrastructure improvements that will benefit Vermonters for years to come.”
Industrial wastewater, like wastewater produced by metal finishers or beverage manufacturers, may contain a significant amount of nutrients or organic matter, and in some cases, could be considered toxic or high strength. Pretreatment, which means addressing wastewater pollution early in the process, ensures that harmful pollutants in wastewater can be removed or reduced before they enter municipal wastewater treatment facilities. Proper wastewater management allows municipalities to reserve a facility’s capacity for future development and growth in that community.